Tigers in the Forest
by In The Key Of Julie
Summary: Tiger Kidnapping: when a hostage is taken to make a loved one of the victim do something. For the first time, the Volturi have employed this method with the daughter of Sam Uley. Sam will do anything to get her back, but what will the Volturi gain?
1. Prologue: The Black Cloaks

**This story has been in my mind for a while. I really am proud of the idea because it is different then most Twilight fanfictions out there. It came from a dream, but the dream had absolutely nothing to do with Twilight. I really hope you enjoy this and please give me any feedback because I love to hear what you guys think! **

**-Julie (Eliza)**

**Prologue: The Black Cloaks**

My first trip to Europe should have been exciting. But as I took my shoes off at security, all I could feel was terror. Four black cloaks surrounded me, making sure I wouldn't run off. I could barely move at all for fear of what they would do to me if I did.

I tied my shoes after going through security and we were just in time to board the plane to New York City. I had never been on a plane before. I had never even been that far from my home at the La Push Reservation except to go to Forks and occasionally Port Angeles.

I would have considered it lucky if New York was our destination, but it was just a stop on the way. My captors were taking me to Italy. Before this, I had always wanted to go to Italy to taste authentic Italian food and take in the gorgeous landscape, but that was not the case now. The petite girl sat next to me, boxing me in to the window seat. Tears started to trail down my cheeks for it was her crimson eyes I feared most.

"Shh. This will be easier if you don't make a scene, Olivia," she whispered, her voice anything but consoling. We were coasting down the runway now; I was positive that this would be the last time I saw Washington.

_They've kidnapped me. _The thought kept coming up in my head. I was sobbing at the thought of never seeing my parents, Sam and Emily Uley ever again. What could the cold ones possibly want with me? I was only a thirteen-year-old girl who most likely wouldn't become a wolf.

Less than twelve hours ago everything was normal. I had taken a shortcut through the woods walking home from my friend Jill's house, as was normal on summer nights. Someone said my name and by instinct, I turned to find four black cloaks.

All the legends and stories I had heard didn't prepare me for the fear and pain I would experience after that moment. I tried to run away, but pain like an electric shock scalded every inch of my body and I was on the ground surrounded by them. There was no escape.

"Hello Olivia. I am Jane and this is Alec, Demetri, and Felix." Though the one who spoke was the smallest of the quartet, she seemed to be the one with the most power. It was then that I saw their red eyes and immediately I recognized them. Vampires. The Volturi. By this point I was trebling.

From the stories I had heard so often at pack bonfires, I had learned that the Volturi were like the monarchs of the vampire world. They were the law, and they had a skilled and dangerous guard to protect them and carry out orders. And here four of the guard where surrounding me, one of which had an uncanny ability to inflict pain on others without even making contact with them.

"Look how scared she is, Jane. Let me take it from here. We're not going to kill you Olivia, I promise. We just need you to come with us to Italy," the largest one, Felix, said. It took every ounce of my courage to whisper "no". The pain was excruciating and an icy hand covered my mouth to stifle my screams. The forest floor came up to meet me and I curled in a ball until the pain finally subsided.

"It would be best if you kept quiet and just went along, Olivia. There's more where that came from," Jane said, a cruel smile on her face. "Also, you'll need to give me your cell phone." I unwillingly placed my only link to my parents in her stone hand.

Felix pulled me off the ground and before I could pull myself together, he scooped me up and ran through the forest faster than a jet plane. Our destination was a fancy car, and there they explained where they were going to take me. We were going to Italy, to talk to their master for reasons they would not say.

And now I was trapped on this plane. I could almost hear my mother's sobs. My father could not stand to see her upset and he would come for me. Thinking about that made me feel a little better. If anyone could take on the Volturi, my father Sam Uley and the rest of the pack could. My dad wouldn't easily be able to leave La Push, and getting the whole pack out as would be nearly impossible, but knowing my dad he would do anything to find me.

It's funny how things you're dreading come quickly, or maybe I just fell asleep, but it seemed like it only took us half an hour to get to the New York airport. Jane stood up swiftly and led the way out of the plane and into the actual airport. To my surprise, Alec pulled my passport from the pocket in his cloak. I had never used it before; it was just something my parents got for me just in case.

The passport brought tears back to my eyes, thinking about how much I already missed my parents. Their love was my only hope of going home, but I knew it wouldn't be easy considering how thoroughly they seemed to have planned this. We waited in hard plastic chairs without any luggage to board the flight to Italy. A quiet growling sound came out of nowhere, and I was scared stiff until I realized that it was just my stomach. But I couldn't eat. Not when I was being held captive by vampires.

"She must be hungry, Jane. We should get her some food," Alec whispered. He looked almost identical to Jane except his features were more boyish than hers.

"Olivia, are you hungry?" I shook my head. I felt like I was going to throw up.

"Not to worry, sister. There will be food on the plane," Alec reassured. Even the immortal feared Jane. For the next few minutes, they conversed in tones so hushed that I couldn't hear. I worried that they were planning what to do with me. The conversations stopped when our flight was called. Again I was stuck sitting next to Jane.

As we took off, I tried to brainstorm a plan to get out of this mess. Nothing came to mind.


	2. Put Her Face on a Milk Carton

**Just so you're not confused, from this point on, each chapter will be in a different point of view. Instead of writing (character) POV, the name of character who's point of view the chapter is in will be in italics under the chapter name. Other than that thank you for the kind words and favorites! Enjoy this next chapter!**

**-Julie**

**Chapter One: Put Her Face On a Milk Carton **

_Sam_

I always looked forward to evenings in the summer. Olivia would sometimes go to a friend's house, but she would still return in time to watch a movie with Emily and me. "Family Movie Night" was the only part of the day where we weren't running all over the place and we could just relax and enjoy each other's company. I was looking forward to snuggling on the couch with my two favorite girls, especially because we had rented _The Muppets_. I would never admit that I wanted see that movie if Livie hadn't suggested it first.

"Where is Livie?" Emily asked, walking in from the kitchen. The clock read 8:35. Olivia was usually home before eight. I enveloped Emily in my arms and kissed the top of her head.

"Let's give her a few more minutes," I said, but Emily still look worried. She handed me the DVD and I put it in the player. Previews flashed on the screen, but Emily would not relax next to me.

"I'm going to call Kim. Maybe Olivia wanted to sleep over with Jill." Emily stood up and I followed her to the phone. Her fingers drummed on the kitchen counter as she waited for someone to pick up. I lifted her hand and her fingers intertwined with mine.

"Hi, Jared. It's Emily. Olivia's not still at your house, is she?"

"No," I could hear from the other line. "She left about a half an hour ago. And she's not home yet?"

"No, not yet. If you hear anything please let me know."

"Will do. Bye, Emily." She hung up the phone and looked at me with an expression of fear. Immediately, I moved towards the door. If anyone so much as laid a finger on my little girl I would rip them to shreds.

"Sam, where are you going?" Emily asked.

"I need to look for her, Em. She has to be out there somewhere." She followed me out the door, but I didn't have the heart to tell her to go back inside. I followed Livie's usual short cut through the forest. Suddenly I was hit with a sickly-sweet scent that burned my nose. And furthermore, it was mixed with the scent of my daughter.

"Bloodsuckers," I snarled.

"The Cullens?" Em asked with a faint trace of hope. I shook my head.

"I recognize the scent, I just can't put a finger on who it is...I think they took her, Em. I smell Livie with them." At that point, my wife broke down into sobs and I had to hold her to keep from falling to the ground. Every sob was like a shot in the heart, but I couldn't stay and comfort her. I carried her back to our house and gently set her down on the couch before running to the phone.

"Hello?"

"Jacob, I need you to get Carlisle now. Tell him to come here as fast as possible and I don't care who he brings. I need to talk to him and I need him here right away." The words escaped my mouth so fast I have no idea how he understood.

"Sure, Sam. Should I meet you there too?"

"Yes. Thank you Jacob."

"No problem." I hung up and turned my attention to my sobbing wife. I sat next to her on the couch and pulled her into my arms and rubbed her back to get her to calm down.

"Emily, I promise I will do everything and anything to get our daughter back," I whispered in her ear. In response she placed her hands on either side of my face and placed an urgent kiss on my lips.

"I love you so much, Sam. Please promise me that you'll be careful out there. I couldn't stand to loose you too," her voice cracked.

"I promise." I kissed her on the forehead and ran out the door. When I hit the forest, I tied my shorts to my ankle and felt my form shimmer into a giant wolf. My howl pierced the night air. As the rest of the pack phased, their thoughts bounced around my head.

_What's this about?_

_ Is there something wrong?_

_ This better be important._

_ This is urgent, guys, _I thought to get them to listen. _Olivia has gone missing and I suspect that bloodsuckers are up to it. _Their reactions of shock, sadness, and concern bounced around my head. _I need you to sniff around and try to find Olivia and the bloodsuckers. Please._ I allowed them a glimpse at my sadness and my wife's breakdown.

_We'll find her, Sam._

_ Those bloodsuckers are going down! _Their thoughts had more confidence than I could muster at the moment.

The pack split off in all directions. Nothing like this had ever happened to the pack before, and that worried us all. Vampires hadn't even managed to kill someone in the tribe since ancient times. But there was no sign of a corpse.

_Carlisle is on his way. He, Edward, and Bella will be here as soon as possible_, Jake thought as soon as he phased.

_Thank you Jake. I'm going to phase back to meet them. I assume that you'd like to do the same._ I phased back to my human form and pulled my shorts back on. By the time I had arrived back home, a black Mercedes pulled up in front of my house and Carlisle, Edward, and Bella stepped out, all with concerned looks on their faces.

"Hello, Sam. What's going on? Jacob said it was urgent," Carlisle spoke.

"My daughter has gone missing and we found her scent mixed with the scent of your kind," I said.

"Maybe we'll recognize the scent. Where was she last?" Edward asked. I pointed him in the direction of the forest and he and Carlisle set off to identify the scent of the kidnappers. But Bella hung back to talk to me.

"How are you and Emily holding up?" she asked me.

"It broke Emily's heart when she found out. I had to leave her in the middle of an emotional breakdown and it kills me. But I need to find our daughter," I admitted.

"Do you want me to check on Emily while you deal with things out here?" Bella offered.

"Yes, thank you. I really appreciate it." She ran into the house just as Carlisle and Edward returned from the woods.

"It was the Volturi," Edward informed me. My body shook with anger at just the mention of their name.

"Why would they want my daughter? She's only thirteen and we don't think she'll phase…" I tried to control my anger and terror at the thought of my daughter with those monsters.

"They may want information about the pack. You intrigued Aro when we last saw them. Olivia is young and that could work to their advantage," Edward suggested.

"He could be trying to lure you, or us, for that matter. We know he wants some of our talents and he is interested in having a pack of his own. If we go to Volterra, it will be easier for him to do this," Carlisle offered.

"She could be in Italy?" I nearly shouted.

"It very likely," Edward said. Now I was panicking. How could I go to the bloodsucker headquarters? And thinking of Olivia there just angered me more.

"We have to go, then." I started making my way to the house to pack a bag to take with me.

"Wait, Sam. Don't be too hasty. We could go back to my house and see if Alice can see anything. You and Emily are welcome to come as well," Carlisle said. Even though I wanted to get my daughter back at that second, I saw his point. If I went straight to Italy, I would be falling into their trap.

"Thank you, Carlisle. I'll come, but I think Emily would be better off staying in La Push considering her current state," I replied. "I just need to tell her where I'll be and then I'll come with you."

Emily was still sitting on the couch with tears streaming down her face. Bella was attempting to comfort her, but there's no comforting the inconsolable. My Emily looked up and beckoned me to come over.

"It was the Volturi," I told them, hugging Emily to my chest. Bella gasped, knowing exactly how serious the situation was. "Carlisle and Edward are pretty sure that they're taking Olivia to Italy, but we need to talk to Alice before we can jump to conclusions."

"Italy? My baby can't be in Italy, Sam. Please tell me this isn't true," she whimpered, breaking my heart yet again.

"I'm so sorry Emily, but I just don't know. If she's in Italy, I will leave right away to bring her back." Tears were collecting in my eyes watching my wife bawl and I willed myself not to cry. "I need to go now, love. As soon as I find out what's going on, I will tell you." I started to get up, but Bella stopped me.

"Maybe you shouldn't leave her here alone. I'm sure Nessie would be happy to look after her," she suggested.

"Good idea." My mind was so scrambled I had neglected to think about the well being of my own wife for a moment. I kissed Emily's forehead and Bella followed me out of the house.

"Jake?" Bella called.

"Hey, Bells. What's up?"

"Do you think Nessie would mind coming here to look after Emily while we go talk to Alice?"

"She won't mind at all. I'll go get her right away." Jake ran off in the direction of his house.

"You're welcome to ride with us, Sam," Carlisle offered, gesturing toward the car, but being in such a confined space with three vampires while I was in this state wasn't a very good idea.

"I would be more comfortable running, but thank you," I replied as Jake and Nessie walked over.

"I'm so, so sorry, Sam. I really hope you find her," Nessie said

"Thank you for doing this. Emily is in the living room." Nessie went right inside to look after her. As soon as she was gone, I jogged back to the forest to phase.

_ We found nothing, Sam, _the pack thought at me.

_I know. _I showed them what I had found out and there was a second of silence before their thoughts bombarded me.

_We're coming with you_, Seth thought.

_This time we will take them down_, Embry added.

_If you kidnap an alpha's kid, you face the wrath of the entire pack_, Paul snarled.

_No. Absolutely not. That is exactly what they want. If you come, no one will be here to protect the tribe. They want to use wolves to protect them and if we all go, they can hold us captive. Only I will go with some of the Cullens._ They couldn't fight my logic.

_What if something happens to you? _Jake asked.

_I am willing to risk my life for my daughter, but that doesn't mean that you should risk yours._ The sickly sweet odor started to burn my nose. _I'll let you know what happens, but for now you should all go home and get some sleep, _I thought before I phased back, pulled on my shorts and walked up the porch steps of the big white house. The door was open, but I knocked anyway. Esme greeted me and beckoned me into the living room where almost the entire Cullen clan was clustered around the couch where Alice must have been sitting.

"Has she seen anything?" I whispered. Edward gestured for me to follow him back outside.

"It's easier for her to see when you're not in there," he explained in response to my puzzled thoughts. "The Volturi know of her gift and they haven't made a definite decision. She's only seeing flickers of what could happen. But we do know that they plan to contact us with an invitation of sorts. The wise thing to do would be to wait for it to arrive until we go to Italy."

"Why shouldn't we go now? I can't leave my daughter there, Edward. I can't and I won't." I started to choke up, after all Olivia was my little girl. My sweet, beautiful, innocent child was now in the hands of my definition of pure evil.

"The most you'll have to wait is a week. If we don't follow their instructions, there is a greater risk for all of us, especially Olivia," he replied calmly.

Edward was right and I didn't want to admit that. I had been able to control my anger for a long time, but my hatred toward the Volturi had me shaking like it was my first time phasing. As I struggled to control my convulsions, I backed into the woods so I wouldn't accidentally rip Edward's head off. It took a minute, but I was able to control my anger again and I walked back toward the house.

"So they'll be sending the invitation to you." I tried to swallow my disgust.

"Yes, and I'll notify you as soon as we get it. And Carlisle, Bella, Alice, and I will come with you to Italy."

"You have no idea how much I appreciate your help. Well, I guess you do." We shared a chuckle but it was short-lived. There was no reason to stay any longer so I inclined my head toward Edward in farewell and ran back into the forest to phase.

It had to be at least 1 am by now and I was exhausted as I ran through the forest. No voices entered my mind, and to that I was grateful. I reached my house in less than ten minutes. Emily was asleep on the couch and Nessie sat in one of the chairs with a book in her hands.

"What's the verdict?" Nessie asked me, dog-earing the page in her book.

"I have to wait a week. The…Volturi are going to send some sort of invitation to the Cullens and we have to wait till then to leave for Italy. But when the invitation comes, I'm going to Italy to bring Olivia back no matter what it takes." Nessie placed her hand comfortingly on my back.

"I'm so sorry, Sam. The Volturi are sick creatures but they're smart," she replied. The comment was wavering between comforting and menacing.

"Thank you for taking care of Emily, Nessie. Make sure you update Jake on the situation."

"Of course, Sam. Goodnight and good luck." She put her arm around me before walking out the door. Emily's eyes fluttered open when I lifted her from the couch and she immediately threw her arms around my neck and caught me off guard with a rough kiss.

"I didn't know if you were coming back," she explained.

"And not tell you what was going on? No, I would have come back either way. But, I can't leave for Italy, not yet. They are sending an invitation that will arrive in a week and once that comes, I'll bring her back, Em, I promise," I stroked her hair as she began to cry. "I know you want me to bring Olivia back tonight and so do I, but they may hurt her if we go."

This time I allowed myself to cry with her. "I'm so sorry, love," I murmured over and over again as I set her down on the bed and I lay down myself. It wasn't just physical exhaustion that lulled us to sleep so quickly; it was the emotional exhaustion that came with our daughter going missing. I was never a religious person, but that night I prayed that Olivia would be safe at home as soon as possible.


	3. Mixed Impressions

p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;"strongSorry it took a little longer to upload this chapter. The next chapter will probably take a while longer, since I have to work on my other fanfiction called Eliza CullenBlack: The True Story. If you want to read that, it would really make me happy. Anyway, thanks for reading and commenting!/strong/p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;"strong-Elizastrong/p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px; text-align: center;"strongChapter Two: Mixed Impressionsstrong/p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px; text-align: center;"emOliviaem/p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;"I had to admit that the scenery on the flight to Italy was incredible. At La Push, I had paid frequent visits to First Beach to see the ocean, but seeing it from above the clouds was incredible. But my fear did not escape me. What if they were going to kill me and use me as food when we got to Italy? But La Push was awfully far to travel from Italy just for a meal. Still, I didn't doubt that they would torture me in some way when we got there.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;"Through most of the flight, I slept, but I dreamt of the four, cloaked figures and I woke suddenly with Jane's cold hand over my mouth to stifle the screams. Out of the frying pan and into the fire. She was able to force some food into me, but I only nibbled. We landed in Italy in the afternoon and my four captors stood with swiftness but I would not budge. I owed it to my parents to put up a fight.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Olivia, I will ask you nicely. Will you please stand up?" Felix asked. No I would not stand up, I wanted to shout at them, but I could only shake my head vigorously. Of course they wouldn't have it and I was lifted from the seat and lead down the aisle and off the plane into the afternoon Italian sun.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Don't make a scene, Olivia," Jane rebuked through clenched teeth. That seemed to be all they cared about. They committed mass murder quite frequently, and as long as they didn't make a scene, it was completely justifiable to them. They were almost completely covered in their cloaks and they had huge sunglasses shading their faces so no one would see what would happen when the sun hit their skin.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;"Along with the fear now was hate. Hate for what they were, what they did, and for taking me away from my home where my parents were probably scared out of their wits for me. A fancy car with darkened windows was waiting to take us the Volturi's headquarters and my new prison.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;"We silently rode through the gorgeous Italian countryside. Occasionally I would see their lips move slightly, but I couldn't be sure because I couldn't hear any sounds coming out of them. On the flight there, I had stopped crying but the tears were picking up again and I was close to hyperventilating when we could see the amazing old city looming ahead.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Breathe, Olivia," Jane said in a harsh tone as we pulled through the gates of the city. We drove down the tiny cobbled streets and through the square with a fountain and a magnificent clock tower. The scene was rather picturesque, but they parked the car on a side street and pulled me out. It was a dead end, but I watched as Demetri pulled up a manhole cover and dropped down through the hole.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;"My resulting gasp was of panic. I did not want to fall down the manhole to the underground crypt. It was like in movies where the hero had to slide down a hole and face a giant monster to save a dying girl. But I was no hero. Felix went down next, and Jane nudged me from behind.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Felix will catch you. There's nothing to worry about," Alec spoke. On the contrary, there was everything to worry about since I was in a strange city, in a strange country all alone with vampires who may or may not kill me. But I complied grudgingly, closing my eyes before dropping down. It was similar to sliding down a tubular slide but it was colder, steeper, and much more sinister. Felix's cold arms caught me but put me down right away.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;"Jane and Alec came down in succession and we pressed forward though the sewer-like alleys. Normally I did not get claustrophobic, but the tunnels we were passing through added more tears. We were moving farther down until we reached an elevator that brought us up. The opera coming from the speakers was so horrendous, I held my ears, and I could hear Demetri chuckling behind me at my reaction.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Looks like we need new elevator music," he said almost too quietly for my ears. The doors slid open to reveal a nondescript lobby with an obviously human receptionist.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Hello, Jane, Alec, Felix, Demetri. You can go right in. Aro is anxiously awaiting your arrival," the girl said.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Thank you, Gianna," Jane replied without an ounce of thankfulness in her voice. The secretary was a traitor to humankind if she could serve them while they devoured her people. There was a pause to my sobbing as I glared at her. We walked through one more hallway and stopped in front of two enormous, ornate stone doors.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;"They were pulled open to reveal a room the size of the city square with late afternoon sunlight streaming through windows a least two stories above the floor. At the opposite end of the room sat three figures that were so obviously vampires, it sent a chill through my entire body. Two of the three had black hair while the other had strikingly blond hair that was almost white. The one in the middle with black hair stood from his elaborate stone throne.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Ah, welcome back, my dears! And you have succeeded in bringing the girl! Excellent. I knew you wouldn't fail me," he projected across the room.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Thank you, master," Jane said, a small smile on her face.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""So now let's get to know our young friend. My name is Aro. And yours is…?" I had no desire to answer him so I kept my mouth closed.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Would you like me to help this along master?" Jane asked, an evil grin forming on her face.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""It's Olivia," I interrupted timidly. Now that I knew the pain she could inflict, I would do anything to avoid it. "Olivia Uley."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Well it is very nice to meet you, Olivia," Aro said. "Let me introduce you to my friends." He proceeded to name every vampire in the room, which from legends I had learned were the guards for him and the other two still sitting on the thrones named Marcus and Caius.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;"His voice was absolutely unnerving; behind the calm façade there were hints of evilness and insanity. The way the other seemed to revere him, gave me the clue that he would be the one to decide my fate. For the sake of my parents, I hoped he wasn't as malicious as he seemed.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""I would love to get to know you more, young Olivia, but you have had a long journey and I'm sure you need some rest. Am I correct?" I nodded mechanically. "Demetri, would you show Olivia to her room?" Demetri moved forward and put his hand on my back to lead me to another door in the room.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""I will see you tomorrow, young one. Please make yourself at home until that time." The promise from Aro scared me more than comforted. It was a welcome escape to be walking down another hallway to another door, this one normal sized. The room behind it held a wrought iron bed, a bookshelf, and a bedside table with a lamp. For creatures that don't sleep, it seemed odd that they would have a room like this, but it was necessary for this situation.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""There's food for you on the table," Demetri smirked. I whispered a thank you in response and moved toward the bowl, which held a very delicious looking pasta dish. As panicked as I was, I couldn't deny how empty my stomach was and I dug in. An involuntary "mm" escaped my lips.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""I'm going to leave you now. Goodnight," Demetri sounded bored. As soon as he left the room, my body was wracked with sobs. I had never been this far away from my parents before and I missed them terribly. I curled up on the bed, soaking the pillow with tears.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Please, Daddy. If anyone can save me now, it's you," I whimpered before exhaustion drove me to a fitful sleep.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;"For a mere second, I believed that my kidnapping was a nightmare, but one look at the unfamiliar lamp on the bedside table and I knew that it was reality. Luckily, I was alone in the room, but someone had been in here while I slept because a fresh set of clothes sat on the bed and a bowl of cereal and a glass of orange juice sat on the side table. Why were they being so hospitable?p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;"When I was finished and dressed I tried to open the door but it wouldn't budge. I broke into a cold sweat. They had locked me in. The more I tugged on the unyielding door the more panic set in. Finally I heard footsteps on the other side of the door and the sound of the lock twisting, and Alec pulled open the door.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Good morning, Olivia," he greeted half-heartedly. "Aro requests your presence. Please follow me." There was no arguing with someone so powerful.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Olivia! I trust that you had a good nights rest," Aro said when we entered the giant throne room, standing from his seat on the throne. I wondered if he had been there all night and if he left the room at all. "Now it is time to get down to business. I am going to ask you some questions and I would like you to answer with a 'yes' or a 'no'. Do you understand?"p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Yes," I replied meekly, afraid of what Jane would do to me if I refused to respond again.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Good girl, Olivia. Your father is Sam Uley, am I correct?"p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Yes."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""And he is a werewolf or more appropriately, a shape shifter?"p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Yes," I felt like a traitor giving him this information, though he seemed to know it already.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Is Sam the alpha male of his pack?"p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Uh-huh."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Does you father interact at all with the Cullens?"p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Yes."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Good. Do you know anything about them having special abilities?"p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""A little bit."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Like what?"p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""One of them can read minds, another can see the future, and that's all I know." Being this honest felt wrong. Something told me that the piercing red eyes would know if I lied though, even if they couldn't read minds themselves.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Yes. Now this is important, Olivia. I too, am able to read minds. But not the way that Edward Cullen can. He can read minds from a distance, but alas, I can only hear thoughts through physical contact. Do you think you could do me the honor of letting me hear your thoughts? It will make this much easier for the both of us."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;"No. I would not let him hear what I was thinking. That would be a weapon for him to use against me and against my family. For fear of what might come from my answer, I was only able to shake my head.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""I'm quite sorry you feel that way. But you only just got here. In due course you may find that it is the better option," Aro sounded genuinely disappointed. "There is still much that I have to learn from you and, and you from me."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;"There was a pause and everyone in the room waited with stillness for Aro to ask me more questions, but at that moment, Jane came in through the giant stone doors.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""The letter has been mailed successfully, master," she said taking her spot next to Alec. I hadn't even noticed that she was gone.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Thank you, Jane. Do you think the contents of that letter would be of interest to our friend Olivia?" I felt a fearful curiosity now.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Yes, master."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""We have sent a letter to the Cullens to tell them that you are here and to invite them to join us. I also told them to bring your father along." I fell to my knees with a wave of emotion. My sobs echoed off the stone walls. Now there was hope that I would see my mom and dad again.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;"As happy and grateful as I was, I couldn't fully trust their motives. They wouldn't bring me to Italy just to ask me a few questions and let me go home. Stories at bonfires taught me that they were trickier than that. It seemed like they were dragging the Cullens and my dad into this for a reason, and that reason could not be good. My being here could put my father in terrible danger.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;"It became apparent that I would be unable to calm myself down, so Aro ordered Felix to take me to my room. Felix deposited me on the bed and stood there watching me as I fell apart with equal amounts of joy and anguish.p 


	4. How Much Longer?

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>p style="max-height: 999999px;"strongI'm sorry that this took so long to update! I have to alternate between writing this story and by other story. As you may have noticed, I have changed my penname from Liza Cullen-Black to Juliebean. Other than that, thank you for reading and commenting and favoriting and I will try to update sooner!strong/p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; text-align: center;"strongChapter Three: How Much Longer?strong/p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; text-align: center;"emSamem/p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;"I felt like a zombie the next morning. By the time I got home from the Cullen's place and got to sleep it was 2 am and I had to wake up for a morning patrol. Emily was still sound asleep so I was careful not to wake her when I got out of bed and ran outside to do my patrol. I half-heartedly jogged through the forest in my wolf form, but sleep deprivation was preventing me from thinking straight and concentrating on my patrol was proving difficult. Still, I kept running.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;"emHey, Sam. How are you holding up? emQuil thought as he phased into his wolf form./p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;"emOh hey, Quil. I thought your patrol wasn't until later,em I thought back./p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;"emYeah, but I thought I'd lend a hand. I'm extremely sorry about last night.em/p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;"emThanks, Quil. I really need to figure out what to do now, since I have to wait for that damn invitation…emFor a second rage took over my mind, and I could sense it scaring Quil as much as it scared me. emSorry, man. I'm just really shaken up by all of this. I think I'll phase back now./em/p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;"emGood luck Sam.em/p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;"When I arrived at my house, Emily was quietly sipping a cup of coffee at the kitchen table like any other morning. But the look on her face showed that this morning was far from normal. Olivia's absence was killing us both slowly.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Good morning, Em. Did you sleep well?" I asked her, placing a kiss on her forehead.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""I've had better nights," she said weakly.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""I'm so sorry, Em. I don't know how this happened. I should have picked her up last night instead of letting her walk home from Jared and Kim's. It was careless of me. And now we have to wait a week to bring her back and I can't stand to watch you fall apart every second that she's gone…" I sobbed. Emily and I had been together many years, but she had never seen me like this. Somehow, I was the one breaking down now and she was the one comforting me. Her one hand rubbed circles on my back and the other wiped tears from my face.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Shh, Sam. Don't cry. I don't blame you at all. It was the Volturi. As much worry as I have, I have enough faith to know that you emwill emfind her and bring her back," She said in the most soothing voice as I continued to cry. A few tears started to trickle down her face, but soon enough we were both able to stop./p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""This is why I need you so much, Em. Only you can comfort me at a time like this," I told her.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""And I need you. More than you may even know. Please be careful in Italy, Love. As much as I don't want you to go, I need you to. It is excruciating to wait, but I know in my heart that our patience will pay off in the end."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""When did you get so wise?" I asked, pulling her onto my lap.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""We need to make some sense out of this situation and I guess that's just how I do it. Or maybe Billy just rubbed off on me," she replied, nuzzling into my chest. Even as I wrapped my arms around her, with the feeling of pure affection between us, there was still the piece missing. They say that there is no greater pain than the pain of a parent loosing a child, and Em and I could both feel that it was true. But at least there was a light at the end of the tunnel; Olivia was still living, she was just being held captive.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;"For the rest of the day I did everything I could to help Emily around the house. I even assisted with making lunch, which resulted in a few short-lived laughs, but there was a cold silence after each one. Lunch was the quietest lunch I had ever sat through, and when we were finished, there was nothing left for us to do to distract us from the pain. Instead we just sat on the couch and held eachother while we cried.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;"I don't know how much time had passed, but at some point, the phone rang and I couldn't help but be a little hopeful that it was Carlisle or Edward calling to tell me that the letter had arrived early. Of course, that was completely improbable, but I held on to that little shred of hope. Emily pulled away from me so I could stand up to answer the phone.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Hello?"p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Hi, Sam. It's Rachel."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Oh, hey Rach," I replied, slightly disappointed. "How are you?"p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""I'm doing alright. I'm just calling to invite you and Emily over for dinner tonight."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""That is really nice of you Rachel. We would love to come. This will definitely make our lives easier right now."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Alright, so I'll see you over here at six."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Thank you so much for the invitation, Rachel. Normally, I wouldn't want you to go so out of your way like this, but I'm in no state to argue."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""No problem, Sam. Good luck with everything," she said with sincerity.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""See you later." I hung up and turned to Emily. "That was Rachel and she just invited us over for dinner in…" I glanced at the clock. "A half an hour."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""That was sweet of her," she replied, walking over to me and wrapping her arms around my neck. "I should probably change out of pajamas then." I hadn't even noticed that she was still wearing them. She stood on her toes to kiss my cheek, and retreated to the bedroom to change. In the usual female fashion, she took much longer than necessary to get dressed. Emily emerged from the bedroom nearly ten minutes later in one of her nicer tank tops and a pair of shorts.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""If you're going to look that beautiful then I guess I can wait ten minutes for you to get ready," I said. She rolled her eyes at me, but she was still smiling with pleasure.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""I feel like I should bring something to Rachel's," Emily said.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Don't worry about it, Em. Besides, we don't have enough time to make anything." She couldn't argue with that. Since we lived so close to them, we decided to walk to Rachel and Paul's house to get some fresh air. At six, practically on the dot, we rang the doorbell and were greeted by Rachel with her five-year-old Mackenzie clinging to her mother's legs.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Hi guys! Come on in," Rachel said.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Thank you so much for inviting us over," Emily said.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""It was not a problem."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Aunt Emy, where is Livie?" Mackenzie asked. I glanced at Emily to gage her reaction. Paul stood up from his seat on the couch and began to answer the question, but Emily interrupted.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Olivia is on, um, vacation right now. But we're going to bring her back soon."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Oh. Okay." Mackenzie seemed satisfied with that answer. She then ran out of the room, probably to join her older brother in the playroom.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Sorry about that," Paul apologized.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""It's fine. She didn't know any better," I said. We stood there in a tense silence for a moment. No one knew how to react. But Emily broke the silence by offering to help Rachel set the table. Internally, I sighed with relief that she wasn't too shaken.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Look, Sam. I know I'm not the first person you would turn to, but if you need me to help you with anything or you need to take someone to Italy with you, I'm willing to do it," Paul said when our wives had left the room.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""I really appreciate that, Paul. But I can't risk taking any of the pack to Italy, especially you. Your quick temper could probably get us in more trouble," I replied.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""I've been working on that and I think I can control myself Sam. We can't stand to see you and Emily so broken."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""My decision is final, Paul. I'm sorry." That closed the subject. Rachel called out that dinner was ready and Paul turned to the playroom to get the kids to the table. The kids came bouncing into the dining room asking whether we were having chicken fingers for dinner.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""No, but we're having tacos," Rachel said.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""I love tacos!" Justin said.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Me too!" Mackenzie added, following her older brother. The tacos were delicious and it was nice not to have to sit in silence again like we did at lunch. Justin was telling me about the Lego set he was building and Mackenzie, always the chatterbox, was talking about dress-up or some other girly activity. It was nice to have a distraction even though I was reminded of Olivia's absence by almost everything. After dinner, we stuck around for a little while to chat with Rachel and Paul and play with the kids.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""It's getting late. We should probably get going," I said. Emily nodded in agreement.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Yeah, and it's about time for Kenzie and Justin's b-a-t-h-s," Rachel replied.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""I can spell, mama. You just spelled baths," Justin declared proudly.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Good job, Justin! I did spell baths," Rachel praised with a bit of chagrin.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""No!" Mackenzie whined.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""I feel a tantrum coming on," Paul said, picking Mackenzie up.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Thank you again for the delicious meal," Emily said.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Anytime," Rachel replied.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Say goodbye to Uncle Sam and Aunt Emy," Paul instructed his children. We left to a chorus of "goodbyes" and went home to another restless night's sleep.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;"The rest of the week proceeded similarly, though I did manage to run more patrols. Every night, someone else invited us over for dinner and we were too miserable to turn down the invitations. The feelings of pain and loss grew each day, and sometimes I would find myself so angry that my vision would turn red and I would shake and almost burst with anger. All I wanted to do was rip the Volturi to shreds and burn the pieces so I could bring Olivia home, but violence would solve nothing.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;"On the sixth night after she was taken, Billy was the one who invited us for dinner. This time, Emily had the strength to cook dinner for us so Billy wouldn't have to work as hard. I was actually looking forward to dine with him. Billy had a tendency to give good advice. In the early evening, we went over to his tiny house and sat in his living room to eat the chicken that Emily had prepared.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""The Cullen's said that you would be able to leave tomorrow, correct?" Billy asked.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Yes sir," I replied.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""What are the plans then?"p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""As soon as they get the letter, or Alice sees the letter coming, Edward, Bella, Carlisle, and Alice are going to come with me to Italy. And then I don't know. They will probably make it hard, but I'll try just about anything to get her back."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""You're not taking anyone from the pack then."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""No. It's probably safer that way for them. The Volturi won't be able to control us if I'm the only one there."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""That is a smart idea. But Sam, you must proceed cautiously. I have no idea what they might try, but you need to find a quick way out with Olivia. You should comply with their requests, but make sure they are telling the truth first. Luckily, Edward will be coming with you to help you detect their lies. Make sure that you make the best and safest decision for you, Olivia, and the Cullens." I mulled that over for a minute.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;"It was clear that the conversation was over, and we started to talk about normal things like the next bonfire and football while we finished eating. Emily held my hand under the table, squeezing it now and then. Even though it was still pretty early, we told Billy that we had to go, after all, I was flying to Italy tomorrow and I needed a good night sleep. When we were back home, Emily and I curled up in our bed, just cuddling.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""No more waiting to go get her after tomorrow," I said, stroking her hair.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""But I'll still have to wait for you to come back," Emily replied. "Take Billy's advice, Sam. You need to protect yourself and protect Olivia. I won't loose you." She said the last sentence fervently.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""I'll do my best," I promised.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Now get some sleep, love. You need to have as much energy as possible for tomorrow." We kissed. There was not as much passion behind it as there usually was, mostly just urgency.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""I love you so much," I whispered.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""I love you, too," Emily murmured. I closed my eyes and fell asleep with my body curled around hers.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;"As soon as I woke up, I began packing. It was incredibly early and I was groggy, but I found and old duffle bag at the back of our closet and started stuffing clothes in it. I really couldn't think of what else I might need so I just started grabbing random things. Toothpaste, a toothbrush, deodorant, and my wallet went in next and the only thing left to bring was my phone.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;"When I came back into the bedroom, Emily stirred in bed and opened her gorgeous black eyes and looked at me for a moment. I ran to her side and held her hand in mine. This could be the last time I saw her, so I studied her intently to get the last look at my imprint. Even the scars across her face, though still painful for me, looked so beautiful on her.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Did they call yet?" she asked me.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""No, not yet, love. I'm just packing."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Just that little duffle? Are you sure that's enough?" She sat up.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""I don't need that much stuff."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Let me get dressed, and then I'll make you breakfast," she promised as she stood up. Before she could go anywhere, I wrapped my arms around her waist and pressed my lips to hers. Kissing Emily was pure bliss, and the longer we kissed, the more I realized how careful I had to be in Italy so I could return home to this. "Enough distractions. You need to be ready," she said when she pulled away.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;"I walked down the stairs and waited for Emily at the dining room table. When I got back, there would be no empty space where Olivia should be. If I got back at all. Emily didn't take too long to get ready, and soon she took her normal place in the kitchen. The smell wafting through the house was amazing. She put a plate of pancakes and a glass of orange juice in front of me a few minutes later, and I marveled at how mouthwatering the buttery pancake was.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""No wonder you have my heart, Emily. You could seduce anybody with these pancakes," I remarked.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Oh, Sam," she said, tears starting to stream down her face.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Please don't cry, Em. I'll be back. I promise." Tears were starting to pool in my eyes, but I tried to hold them back for her sake.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""I'm sorry. It's just that I'll miss you very much."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Don't apologize, baby. It's alright." I took her hand in my and kept holding it until we were finished. I helped her clear the table afterwards and I nearly dropped the plate in my hands when I heard the phone ring.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Hello?" I answered after the first ring.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Hello, Sam. It's Edward. The letter came this morning, so we are ready to leave as soon as you are." I sighed with relief.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Good. So will I see you here or will I come to your house?"p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""We will be coming to pick you up there. I will also bring the letter because you might want to read it."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Alright, that sounds like a good plan. Thank you so much for doing this, Edward."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""The Volturi have gone too far in taking your daughter. We're on your side, Sam. I will see you in about 15 minutes." He hung up without waiting for a response.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""That was them wasn't it," Emily said.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Yes." In 15 minutes, there was a knock at the door and I opened it to reveal Carlisle.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Hello, Sam. Are you ready to go?" he asked.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Yes, but I just need to take care of one more thing." I turned and hugged Emily tightly and kissed her like it was the last kiss we would ever share, and for all I knew, it could have been.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""I'm going to rescue our daughter no matter what," I whispered in her ear.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""I love you. Be careful," she whispered back.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""And I love you." With that, I grabbed my duffle, walked out the door, and climbed in to the back seat of Carlisle's Mercedes. As the engine revved, I blew a kiss to Emily and mouthed once again "I love you". When I looked back, she was standing on the front steps, waving as tears streamed down her face.p  
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	5. The Strange Man

p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;"strongSorry this chapter took so long! Thanks to Converse37 for helping me with some beta-ing. As per usual, thank you for your support and comments are appreciated./strong/p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px; text-align: center;"strongChapter Four: The Strange Manstrong/p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px; text-align: center;"emOliviaemstrongbr /strong/p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Olivia, is today the day that you will give me the privilege of hearing your thoughts?" Aro asked with a calm façade, though it was evident that he was losing patience with me.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""No," I responded with more anger in my voice than I had expressed in my entire life let alone this past week. Or maybe it was only a few days. I had lost track of the days. Before now, my feelings had mostly been depression. Anger was new, but it was fitting. Aro's goal seemed to be to pry information about the pack from me and I was getting progressively more irate about it.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Master?" Jane asked, moving forward with an outstretched arm. He grabbed her hand and paused for a moment.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Not now, Jane," he sighed. We must wait. When her father comes we will be able to get what we want." Knowing my father, he would probably never get what he wanted, but I didn't say anything. Instead, I left the room because obviously I was no use to them anymore. I was so grateful that the Volturi set the letter to my dad, even if they had ulterior motives.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;"For the whole time I was there, the only rooms I had seen were my bedroom and the throne room. But today, I felt rebellious and decided to explore the hallways of the Volturi lair. I passed my bedroom and walked to the end of the hallway, before picking a door toward the end. To my disappointment, the room only held a desk and chair. The desk only held some paper and an old fountain pen.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;"I left the room in a huff, and opened the door across the hall. This room was more interesting. It was a huge library complete with books from floor to ceiling and some fancy old couches for reading. When I scanned the shelves, I noticed that there was an edition of each book in English, Italian, Spanish, French, Portuguese, and to my surprise, Latin.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Wow," I whispered as I pulled out the Spanish edition of emTo Kill a Mockingbird,em one of the better books that we had read in school, to see if I could understand any of it. Though I was a pretty good Spanish student, I wasn't nearly fluent enough to understand it. I looked at yet more shelves until I reached a shelf that was devoted solely to vampire history and mythology. I pulled out a book in English and sat down on one of the couches to read it. Before I had even finished the introduction, I heard the door open./p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Olivia," Alec called. "Aro wishes for you to return to the throne room. He wants to apologize." I sighed and got up to return the book to its proper place. I really did not wish to find out what Alec's deadly ability was, so I followed him back to the throne room.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Ah, Olivia. I would like to apologize for questioning you so much. Maybe if you told us what bothers you about it, I can stay away from uncomfortable questions," Aro articulated when I entered the room.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""I can't betray my family," I answered quietly.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Would you possibly say anything about the Cullens?" he asked.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""They are on good terms with my father and the pack. Either way, I only know what Nessie has told me."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Nessie as in Renesmee?" Uh oh. I shouldn't have said anything, but now I had to nod.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""We met her years ago. How is she?" he asked, and he seemed to be sincerely interested.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""She is doing well. She's happy with Jacob."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Ah yes, the wolf. Their relationship is a special one, isn't it?" This was where I had to draw the line.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Sorry, but I can't say anymore," I said.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""That's quite alright. At least you are talking again. That's all for now, Olivia. You may go back to your room." I was glad to finally be dismissed, but even when I was, someone always followed me. Today it was Felix who followed me to the room. But instead of turning around when I went inside, he followed me in and sat on a chair that had been brought in to the room earlier in the week.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;"After a moment he said, "Alec informed me that you were just in the library."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""I don't see why that matters," I said quietly.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Well, like you have information that you don't want to share with us, we have information that we don't want you to pass on to your father. We can bring books to you, but there are books that we would prefer you not to read," he explained. It made sense, but it was still infuriating.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""So you kidnap me and bring me to Italy, interrogate me about my family, and emotionally scar me but you can't let me read a book about vampires. That situation is the epitome of good logic!" I shot back loudly and sarcastically.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Olivia, you can't expect everything to be fair," Felix said calmly. That just annoyed me more.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""I obviously can't expect to see my parents anytime soon either. What possessed you to kidnap a 13-year-old? That is sick. I have never been this far from home and I have never gone this long without seeing my parents. It's ridiculous to think that I wouldn't be too upset to answer your stupid questions as a result." He was silent and I realized that he probably wouldn't give me a good response.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""I don't know what to say to you, Olivia. But I suppose that you would like me to leave now." I nodded stiffly. "Dinner will be brought to you in an hour or so." Felix left the room in one swift motion, his cloak billowing out behind him.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;"Now I had an hour to kill and I was still fuming. The drawer in my bedside table was empty and the books on the shelf were all the works of different philosophers for some reason. I picked up a book by Karl Marx, but all of his ideas about Communism swam about my mind in a confusing whirlpool. I flopped down on the bed and lay there facedown for a while, but it only made things worse. I decided to go back to the bookshelf and I selected a book by Thomas Hobbes.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;"Within the first chapter, I learned that he had a very negative view on human nature. He also believed in absolute power, which seemed to align with the philosophy of the Volturi. After what I had experienced, I couldn't stand to read about this man anymore and I threw the book to the ground. Before I could read yet another man's stupid philosophy that I did not agree with, there was a gentle rap on the door.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Come in," I snarled. To my surprise, the figure that entered my room was human. It was the secretary I had seen on my first day here; Gianna was her name.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Here is you dinner. Aro thought that you might like some human company," she said in a sweet voice. It was a shame that I already had a bad prejudice about her, since she sounded nice.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Thank you," I said.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Your name is Olivia, right?"p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Yes." I kept my answer short.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Well, I am Gianna." She held out her hand for me to shake, and I obliged. I began to eat my dinner. It was like meatloaf, but much more delicious. Gianna sat on the chair while I ate.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""How old are you?" she asked.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""13."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""That's young," she said to herself, but I heard it anyway.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""How can you work for them? If they didn't prove that they were monsters already by killing people for their own pleasure, they most definitely proved it by kidnapping a mere 13-year-old for information. Why don't you just leave?" I spat at her. She was taken aback, but she kept her answer calm.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""If I keep my loyalty to them, they may make me immortal."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Why would you want that?" I said with disgust.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Felix," she admitted. She must have pitied me because I could find no other explanation for her honesty. p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Oh...That doesn't change my opinion on you, though."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""I'm sorry." Why should she be?p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""So do they let you talk to other people, or do they keep you prisoner here?"p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""I wouldn't say prisoner, but I do stay here. It's for my own safety." I laughed coldly. When did I become so cold? "Look, I know you have a set opinion on the Volturi, but they're not as bad as you think. And I heard that your father is coming and if they invited him to come, then they must have the intention of letting you leave."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""I finished my dinner," I said. Gianna took my plate and walked toward the door.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Perhaps I'll see you again, but if not, good luck."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Thanks." She left the room and I lay down on the bed and thought about what she had said. Even if they were going to let me go back home, their plan, whatever it was, seemed awfully selfish. In the end, they would win. And I would be scarred for life and something would have to be missing, because the Volturi would want something in exchange for me being able to leave.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;"I let my eyes close, but I wasn't ready to sleep. A strange feeling swept over me like something important was going to happen. Hopefully, that meant that tomorrow would be the day that my dad would come. I held on to happy memories of him and my mom to help me fall asleep, and soon I dosed off in a not completely calm, but less restless sleep.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;"When I woke up, I found myself annoyed that the room was windowless, because I wanted to know what time it was. I sat up groggily, and surveyed my clothes for the day. It was a little creepy, actually, how they seemed to know my size. The jeans fit me perfectly and so did the t-shirt. Just as I began to grow impatient, the lock turned and one of the Volturi that I didn't recognize brought me my breakfast.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;"She didn't say a word as she watched me eat my cereal. We were both studying each other, but the look on her face made me uncomfortable. I didn't even know her name, but she seemed to have no intention of talking to me at all, even when I thanked her for breakfast. All I got was a slight nod as she exited the room.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;"I flopped onto the chair in annoyance. If my dad didn't come, Aro was going to pull out all the stops to get me to crack today after my behavior yesterday. But for now I was stuck waiting. After about thirty minutes, there was a knock on the door and I jumped up to open it. Jane stood before me and she had an evil little smirk on her face.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Your presence is requested in the throne room." Could this be it? I tried not to get too excited, but I couldn't stop my heart from racing. Finally I would be able to leave this prison and go home. Jane led me through the hallway, but stopped in front of the big wooden doors.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Please wait here," she said and she slipped through the doors. That seemed a little odd to me, but I didn't dare question anything because that could mean that I wouldn't be able to see my parents again. It was hard to hear any voices coming from the other room. I put my ear up against the crack in the door in an attempt to listen. All I could hear were voices that were too unclear to understand. One was Aro with his level voice sounding like he was reasoning with another voice that evidently belonged to a vampire, but was not one of the Volturi. He had to be a Cullen.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;"And then there was a growl that was unmistakably my dad and I smiled for the first time in ages. I had always looked at my dad as a superhero even if he didn't feel the same way about himself. Now I was Lois Lane and my Superman of a father had come to same the day. Aro was speaking in a pseudo-soothing voice and I was sure that my dad was not buying one bit of it.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;"When Jane said something, I knew that I had to move away from the door. The echoing footsteps that were getting louder confirmed that. Jane opened the door so I could see into the room, but a line of black cloaks blocked my view. I stood on my tiptoes to try and peek around them, but it was no use.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Would you please ask the guard to move from Olivia's view?" said a smooth male voice that must have come from a Cullen.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Of course, Edward," he replied. The guards stepped aside at once to reveal a group of vampires that looked vaguely familiar standing with a man who looked very out of place, but he smiled as soon as his eyes met mine.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Olivia," he said in a relieved voice.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;"My dad.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;"And I ran. Now I had a giddy grin on my face and he held open his arms for me, but before I reached him, I jolted to a stop. My mind had suddenly gone blank. All of the recognition and happiness from before seemed crazy. Who was this man? I could not find any memories of him. He looked like me, but there was no way we were related. Slowly, I backed away from the strange man.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""Olivia, what is going on? What have they done to you?" His expression had changed from joy to confusion.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""How do you know my name?" I said, slightly panicked.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""What? It's me, Livie. It's Daddy," his voice cracked on the last word. There was no way I had ever called this man "Daddy".p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""I'm sorry, but you can't be my father. I have never seen you before in my life," I said, trying not to be rude even though I was afraid to trust him. I couldn't help but feel bad for him, though, as his face contorted into and expression so full of sorrow that I almost cried just from looking at it.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; font-family: Verdana, Verdana, Arial; font-size: 13px;""No." He said only one word, but he sounded so broken that I almost wanted to know who he was. But he was still a stranger to me.p 


	6. Not Alone

**Sorry for the delay! Again, thanks to Converse37 for beta-ing. The chapter title comes from **_**A Very Potter Musical**_** by Starkid, and if you haven't seen it, search it on youtube. There have been some incredibly sweet comments that were posted, so thanks so much to those who commented. You inspire me to write more.**

**Chapter Five: Not Alone**

_Sam_

How could this happen? Just as Olivia was in my reach, those sadistic, cold-blooded, swine did something, I had no idea what, that suddenly made her fail to recognize me. The despair that I felt was enough to drown out my anger for now. I glanced behind me at the Cullens, who were frozen by the coldness of the Volturi's actions. After a lengthy second, Edward unfroze, and whispered something in Bella's ear.

"Dad," Olivia said suddenly with a confused expression on her face. "What just happened?" And finally, she was in my arms. I picked her up like I did when she was a toddler and kissed the top of her head.

"Thank goodness you're alright," I whispered while mentally thanking Edward for taking action. The look on Aro's face was subdued, but obviously unhappy. We had foiled his plan. But he surely had more up his sleeve.

"Now that you're reunited, I'm sure you would like to go back home, yes?" Aro asked. I glared daggers at him, but nodded. "Unfortunately, it won't be that easy. After all, we didn't just bring Olivia here for our enjoyment, though I have found her to be a precocious young lady. We were expecting something in return for her release…"

"I really doubt that he'll agree to that," Edward said.

"What…" I started.

"In exchange for Olivia, we would be interested in studying your kind by bringing them here. In studying you, we could find out if you would be useful to us," Aro explained.

"Absolutely not," I growled back. Edward shot me a cautioning look. "I mean, it would be unsafe for both parties if part of the pack came here." There was still a trace of bitterness in my voice that I wasn't able to eliminate.

"What a pity. We really were interested in studying the habits of you, shall we say, 'shape-shifters,'" Aro said sincerely. "But of course we'll have to figure out another arrangement…" he trailed off seemingly in thought. A glimpse behind me showed Alice giving Edward a desperate look. She must know what's coming. But rather than say anything, they waited as one of the other Volturi monarchs moved toward Aro, his arm out so Aro could grasp his hand and read his thoughts. I hoped that he never did that to Olivia. The thought alone made me shutter.

"Fantastic idea, Caius!" Aro pronounced. Now I was worried. I pulled Olivia a little closer to me, in case they were planning to take her away from me again. "Carlisle, In place of bringing the pack here, perhaps we can borrow some members of your coven for a time. Bella and Alice would be of great use to us." This was far from what I expected, but still anger boiled up inside of me. Of course this was what they were after, even if they couldn't get the pack. He probably knew that I would refuse and _then_ he would pull out the big guns.

The expressions on Carlisle, Edward, Bella, and Alice's faces held no trace of surprise; even though they had seen it coming, their faces still held varying degrees of horror. Even Olivia, who barely knew the Cullens, was looking at me with dismay. The Volturi, on the other hand, were trying to hide their pleasure. It seemed like they finally had us cornered. Edward was the first one to speak after what seemed like hours worth of jarring silence.

"May we have some time alone to think this through? And we won't try to run off—we value our lives more than that."

"I suppose I could allow you to do that," Aro consented. "Felix…" An extremely muscular member of their guard stepped forward and addressed Aro as "master". It made me sick. "Would you mind taking them to the waiting room?" Felix obliged like a mindless slave and led us out of the throne room and into the area with the human receptionist that we had gone through before. He gave us a warning about running off and left us alone with the human woman, who was typing away at her computer.

"You two must want a moment alone," Carlisle said. "We'll be over there." He gestured toward the chairs on the opposite side of the room from where I had just sat down.

"Thank you. But don't make the decision without me," I said, even though I wasn't sure that I had much of a say in the matter.

"Of course we won't, Sam," Carlisle reassured. He was kinder to me then I deserved. They sat across the room and finally, I could turn my attention to Olivia, who was sitting in my lap.

"Are you ok, Liv? Did they torture you or anything?" I asked her.

"I think I'm ok." Her voice betrayed her by trembling a bit. "I don't really want to talk about it, Dad."

"You don't have to, sweetie. It's just important to me to know if they did anything horrible or pried any information out of you that I wouldn't want them to know."

"I didn't let Aro hear my thoughts, if that's what you're saying," she replied and I gave an audible sigh of relief.

"Good job, Livie. I'm so proud of you for being brave. I was afraid that I was going to find you as a screaming, sobbing mess and you seem reasonably sane."

"Thank you for saving me, Daddy," she whispered into my shoulder, a tear dripping onto my t-shirt. "I don't think I could have taken it much longer." My hand was automatically moving in circles on her back in an attempt to comfort her.

"I love you, kid. You have no idea how scared your mom and I were when we thought you were gone." She didn't reply, probably because she was crying in earnest now, but she kissed my cheek. I carried her over to where the Cullens had their heads bent close together, talking quietly.

"Take a seat Sam," Carlisle said when I approached.

"Before we let you in on our discussion, we need to explain something to you," Edward said when I sat down. "One of the members of the Volturi's guard, Chelsea, has the ability to either create or dissolve relationships between people, except for romantic relationships. When Olivia didn't recognize you, it was because of Chelsea's ability. I knew it was coming, but I thought that your relationship with Olivia was too strong for it to affect her. Clearly I was wrong, though I think that it was mostly due to the fact the Olivia was especially vulnerable emotionally at the time. Luckily, Bella's shield works against that."

"Whoa. Okay. Thanks for the explanation," I replied.

"We don't have much time," Alice urged. "We need to come up with a decision."

"It looks like we just have to give in," Carlisle said forlornly.

"Carlisle…" Edward said.

"Not that it's my decision to make, but that is ridiculous. You can't just give in to them! You can't let them win," I interjected, my voice growing louder with each word.

"But we can't fight them. They're too powerful," Bella added in a whisper.

"We can give in on our own terms," Edward said. "It will take some negotiating, but Aro won't go out of his way to torture us like that."

"He specifically asked for Bella and Alice, but he probably wouldn't mind having Edward…" Carlisle said partly to himself and partly to the group.

"Am I really worth that?" Olivia asked suddenly. My jaw dropped. Of course she was, and I started to say so, but Edward interrupted.

"You are everything that the Volturi is not, Olivia. And that makes you worth even more then what we are going to give them." That seemed to placate her. I gave him a grateful look and he nodded as if it was nothing. "We can negotiate that we'll only have to stay for a few years."

"Edward, I don't know if I can do it," Bella murmured almost to quietly for my ears.

"You won't be here alone, Bella. I promise that I won't let them have you without taking me too," Edward assured her fervently.

"What about Jasper?" Alice asked, her voice close to a whimper. "If Carlisle goes back alone, it's going to break his heart. He might even leave, or try to come here for me."

"I won't allow it," Carlisle said with certainty.

"I don't think that will be enough," Alice replied, shaking her head.

"It looks like I have to go, and if Edwards with me, the most I'll stay is two years," Bella said.

"But he'll still want Alice…" Edward trailed off in thought.

"If you can negotiate as little as two years or less, I'll allow them to have me for half of the time," Alice sighed with defeat. "I need to call Jasper, then." She pulled out a small silver phone and walked across the room and began to speak quickly and urgently.

"I can't believe that you're going to do this," I said after a minute of quiet.

"It's necessary to bring Olivia back home," Carlisle exhaled. "Aro won't force them to stay longer than they want, especially since they will be of no use if they are angry with him." Even knowing what I know about the Volturi and the situation we were in, I still couldn't justify Edward, Bella, and Alice having to serve _them_.

"Wait, so we're just going to leave here without them?" Olivia asked Carlisle while we waited for Alice to finish her call.

"If we can't arrange anything else, we'll have to," Carlisle replied. Olivia looked appalled by his response. The only time I heard any of the Cullens sound this defeated was years ago, when Nessie was young and the Volturi came to us in hopes of conquest. Now, finally, they were getting their wish.

Alice returned to us then, looking miserable. If she were able to actually cry, I was sure that her cheeks would be tear-stained and her eyes would be red and puffy. Bella asked if she was okay in a concerned voice, and Alice nodded, but Edward shook his head when Alice wasn't looking.

"We should go back in now," Edward said, standing up. The rest of the Cullens and I stood too and followed him to the large ornate doors that led back to the throne room. Olivia looked like she'd rather slit her throat then go back in there, and I didn't blame her, but I wasn't going to leave her alone.

"You have come to a decision, I presume?" Aro asked expectantly.

"Yes. We were hoping that you would be willing to be a bit flexible," Carlisle began.

"How so? What do you propose?" Aro was intrigued, but more cautious now.

"Bella, Alice, and Edward are willing to…join your guard…" The words sounded painful coming from Carlisle, but a smile spread across Aro's face like he didn't notice. "But they don't want to stay here for long." He was skirting the issue, making it seem like Aro had more control.

"They don't have to, of course. We'll consider this a trial run, of sorts. If they like it they can stay, and if they don't no one will keep them from leaving." Hearing this released some of the tension around me, but I didn't trust Aro one bit. "How long would be most comfortable for you?" He directed his question at Edward, Bella, and Alice.

"A year is the most, um, _comfortable_ for us," Edward said and instead of waiting for a spoken answer he responded to Aro's thoughts, "That's what I thought. Bella is willing to stay two years at the most, and I will be here as long as she is." Bella looked at him gratefully. "Alice on the other hand, will only stay for a year, because she has to return to Jasper."

Aro sighed, and turned to the other two Volturi to contemplate how to proceed. Their voices were too quiet for my ears, and much of their conversation was Aro listening to their thoughts. All of us threw glances at Edward, who chose to keep his expression blank while Bella and Alice's faces were painted with anxiety.

"I suppose we can adjust to your needs in this case. After all, if you find that your time here is too short, you can always extend your stay," Aro announced finally.

"Thank you," Carlisle said quietly. There was so much sadness in his face and I felt extremely guilty for it. Olivia looked at me, the guilt that I felt multiplied in her eyes.

"Now, there are a few things we need to work out. Will you be continuing your diet in your time with us?" Aro asked Edward.

"Yes," he answered firmly. _Good for you, Edward_, I thought. If they were going to give in, at least they were going to put up a good fight.

"That's not a problem, you'll just have to be cautious, if you don't mind. And if that proves to be too difficult for you, deviating from your diet is always an option." Aro raised an eyebrow, but Edward shook his head. "And we'll need to find you cloaks, of course…but this can all be done later. How about you take a moment, go back into the reception area, and say your goodbyes before we have you for real?" I wasn't the only one who flinched at that last part. "And as for you, Carlisle, Sam, and Olivia, you can leave after your farewells. It has been an interesting experience meeting both you and your father, Olivia. I wish you all the best."

Olivia nodded curtly and Edward thanked Aro with a note of scorn in his voice. I followed him and the rest of the Cullens as they quickly escaped the room. When they started their goodbyes, I gestured for Olivia to follow me into the corner. This was their moment. The whole time, Olivia was whispering, "I can't believe that I did this," in a downtrodden voice while I Carlisle let go of the people who had become children to him. Bella's dry sobs reached me from across the room along with Edward's empty voice reassuring that everything would be fine. (It wouldn't.)

When I thought they were done, Edward came over to us and said, "You don't have to feel guilty. Aro has been trying to acquire us for ages so it was about time. But at least we'll be able to leave. This isn't the end." The words lifted my spirits a bit, though not completely.

"Thank you so much," Olivia said.

"Yes, thanks to all of you for helping me out. You really didn't have to," I added.

"But we wanted to," Carlisle replied.

"If we stay here much longer they will be angry," Alice said blankly.

"We should probably get back in there. But seriously Sam, we _wanted_ to help you. I'm glad that I'm doing this for you and Olivia and not for some insignificant reason. Just tell Nessie that Edward and I love her…" Bella's voice broke and she couldn't continue.

"Good luck," I said as they walked through the ornate doors. And that was it. We stood there for a few minutes; the combination of Carlisle thinking to himself and Olivia waiting for me to say something even though I couldn't think of anything that would ease the mood left us in a silence. Only the receptionist clicking away on her computer and her occasional sighs could be heard.

"Let's go," Carlisle said finally. "It should be dark enough by now for me not to attract attention." Olivia and I followed him through the door and the winding halls until we found ourselves outside in the darkness of the late evening. Finally, we could escape this awful place, but I almost couldn't bring myself to leave without Edward, Bella, and Alice.

I took shotgun in the sleek Italian car that Carlisle found to drive us here from the airport, and we drove away. I had what I wanted, my daughter sitting behind me, finally safe, but I hadn't anticipated the cost. Instead of feeling happy and relieved, all I could feel was a feeling of foreboding.


	7. Coming Home to Emptiness

**This update is quick, but I can't garauntee that the next one will be. Again, I really appreciate all of your kind comments. You can keep them coming. **

**Chapter Six: Coming Home to…Emptiness **

_Olivia_

We had a few hours left of our layover in New York and my dad and I were eating pizza at a little authentic Italian restaurant. After my experience, I would have thought that I would never want to so much as smell pasta or marinara sauce again, but hunger knows no bounds. Since we escaped Italy, Dad had been back and forth between displeased at himself about leaving Edward, Bella, and Alice behind, and happily relieved that I was safe. Honestly, I was starting to get emotional whiplash.

Carlisle had urged us to go on without him; he was desolate, and nothing anyone said could fully erase the guilt that I felt. And on top of that, all of the fear and angst and confusion that had filled me in Italy had not yet left my bloodstream. Something told me that it would be there for a while. At least there was a fine coating of relief that I was with my dad and we were going home.

"Wow. The whole thing about New York style pizza being the best is definitely true," Dad gushed after taking his first bite.

"Now all we need to do is smuggle this past airport security," I joked half-heartedly. He wanted his little girl back and I wasn't going to let a confusing mix of emotions take that away from him.

"I don't think that will work, but if we're lucky they'll deliver," he replied. The corner of my mouth turned up against my will. Conversation slowly puttered out after that. It was too painful for me to talk about my time away, and it seemed too painful for him too. Luckily, I wasn't too hungry and Dad eats quickly, so we left the restaurant before the silence drove me crazy.

Our flight was due to depart soon, so we took a taxi to the airport and met Carlisle at security with our only piece of luggage. His face held a blank expression when he greeted us, and his presence only added to the our silence. If this was how it was going to be, I was going to die of boredom by the end of the flight. But as we took off, Dad engaged Carlisle in conversation, though it was to quiet for me to hear.

I just needed to tune out, so I put on headphones and started to watch a movie. Even though it was a movie that I really liked, it couldn't hold my attention. My mind kept wandering into places where I really didn't want it to go. Eventually, I drifted into an uneasy sleep, only to be awoken a few hours later by my dad telling me that we had to get off the plane.

We moved through the airport quickly, and then we were outside in the familiar humid air, getting sprayed by a fine mist. Carlisle led us to his sleek black Mercedes to begin the last leg of our journey. The journey was quiet for the most part until we were ten minutes from La Push and Dad called my mom. I couldn't help but eaves drop on the conversation.

"Hi, Em, it's me…everything is fine, love. I just wanted to let you know that we'll be home in about ten minutes…Em, you know that I needed to do it. Really. You don't have to thank me…I missed you, too…We'll talk about it when I don't have an audience…" I looked down sheepishly when his eyes caught mine in the rearview mirror. "I love you, Emily…Alright. See you in a few minutes…Me too…Ok, bye, babe." He ended the call just as we were approaching the entrance to La Push. For some reason, the love in his voice added to my pain.

"Are you ready to go home, Olivia?" Carlisle asked. It was the first thing he had said since the start of the car ride.

"Yes," I said, though I wasn't sure how certain I sounded. After such a horrific experience, I didn't know if I would be able to be normal again. I couldn't linger on the thought, though. Carlisle pulled the car up our driveway and turned off the ignition. Dad was out of the car and opening my door quicker than I could bat an eyelash. We ambled up the front walk, Dad's hand guiding me from the small of my back. And before I knew it the door flew open and my mother held her arms open for me.

"My baby," she whispered into my hair. Words failed us in that moment; we were both only capable of sobbing, but smiling.

"I love you, mama," I said.

"I love you too, Olivia. I'm so glad to have you back," she replied, finally releasing me and turning to my dad. They held eachother in a tight embrace.

"Hey…" Dad murmured into her hair.

"Sam, I love you. Thank you so much," Mom said fervently. She then pulled his head down to hers and kissed him with so much love and passion that I had to turn away. When they finally broke away, I was standing in the threshold of the house.

"You can go in, Liv. I just want to thank the Cullens before they leave," Mom said and started to walk toward Carlisle's car. I didn't move though; I wanted to see how this would unfold. Dad grabbed her wrist before she could get any farther and she gave him a questioning look.

"Um, Emily…only Carlisle is here. Edward and Bella and Alice are…" Dad couldn't finish his sentence. He felt as much guilt as I did. Maybe more, considering that he knew them much better than I did.

"What is it, Sam?" she asked, concerned.

"They're in Italy," Carlisle answered for my dad, climbing out of the car.

"What? No. That can't be…" But Carlisle nodded forlornly. "I'm so sorry," Mom whispered.

"You should probably get going, Carlisle. I'll explain everything to her. Thank you, again," Dad said, wrapping his arm around Mom's waist and pulling her gently toward the door.

"Wait. I can't thank you enough for what you have done for us, Carlisle. If there is anything we can do to repay you, just let us know," Mom said, moving from Dad's grasp to give Carlisle a grateful, and also consoling hug. Carlisle pulled away first and went back to his car. He must have been dreading facing the rest of his family after this.

"Come on. You two must be very hungry," Mom said finally, walking up to the door. She walked over to the kitchen and immediately started preparing dinner, pulling a bag of marinating steaks out of the fridge. Normally, I would offer to help my mom prepare dinner, but I just wanted to be alone.

I was careful to keep my escape quiet, but before I retreated to my room, I paused for a moment on the stairs to listen to what my parents were talking about. By the sound of it Dad was telling Mom what happened in Italy, and I took the rest of the stairs quickly so I wouldn't have to hear it. I flew through the air and landed face down on my bed. And cue the depressing soundtrack. Unfortunately, there was an incredible lack of anything depressing or just plain loud in my iTunes. I made a mental note to look into that some other time.

But now I was tired and I realized that I really needed to have time to think. Being home wasn't making me feel as safe as I thought it would. I was torn between not wanting to leave my parents' sides, and wanted to stay locked away in my room. Obviously both options were crazy; if I did either one, I would make my parents worry even more, and I couldn't do that to them. But they're not idiots…

"Olivia, sweetie? Dinner's almost ready," Dad called up the stairs. Only now did I notice the smell of steaks in the frying pan. I had forgotten how good my mom's cooking is. I hurried down the stairs and took my seat at the dining room table, which had already been set. As soon as the food was on the table, I loaded up my plate and began to stuff my mouth with steak and potatoes before anyone could say anything to me.

The meal was a whole lot of awkward silence with an occasional half-hearted joke from my dad to try and lighten the mood. They were obviously afraid of upsetting me by talking about my time away. And they were right to avoid the subject because it would have. We were done eating sooner than usual because there was no conversation to distract us.

"Do you want to watch a movie or play a board game or something, Olivia?" Mom asked, pushing her plate away from her.

"No thanks. I think I just want to go to bed," I replied. I picked up my plate and started to get up, but Dad protested.

"We'll clear the table, Liv. You can head on upstairs." Mom nodded in agreement and I put my plate back down and started toward the stairs. I could hear Mom's worried voice behind me saying that I didn't seem like my self.

"Just give her some time, Em. She's been through a lot. We all have," Dad replied. I was too far up the stairs to hear any more. It had been too long since I had showered, and I was feeling a bit disgusting, so I pulled off my clothes and hopped into the shower, not even bothering to warm up the water. The water was the perfect distraction, and when I got out of the shower thirty minutes later, I felt refreshed.

I put on some pajamas and threw the clothes I was wearing earlier to the very back of the closet. It would hurt too much to see them again. Time was my new enemy, and time was all I had. All I could think about was what happened in Italy, and that was exactly what I didn't want to think about. I didn't want to do anything anymore, but that would just upset everybody around me. My thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the door.

"Come in," I said. Mom opened the door.

"Can we talk?" she asked me.

"Sure," I replied, scooting over on the bed so she could sit down.

"If you want to talk about anything, you can talk to me. But if you don't want to talk about what happened, that's ok. I'm not gunna make you say anything. Daddy and I just want you to know that we love you and we will always be here," she said.

"Thanks, mom." She wrapped her arms around me, and we hugged for a minute.

"And sweetie? We won't be offended if you decide that you don't want to talk to us, but you will talk to someone else, okay?" She pushed some hair back from my forehead and kissed it before standing up. "Goodnight, Olivia. If you need anything, Dad and I will be downstairs for a while. I love you."

"I love you too, Mom," I replied. She walked out of the room and closed the door behind her. It was sweet of her to reach out like that, but I wouldn't say anything. Not to her, not to dad, and most definitely not to anyone else. I turned off the lights except for a tiny reading light, and tried to fall asleep. Luckily, all of the traveling and bad experiences made me extremely fatigued, and I fell asleep quickly.

It was early when I woke up. And neither of my parents was awake, probably because they were up late celebrating the fact that my dad and I both survived Italy. I got dressed in sweats and a random t-shirt and walked down the stairs. The quiet house was actually a comfort, and I stole my dad's newspaper and read it while I ate breakfast. When I was finished, I moved to the couch to watch TV, but I wasn't really paying attention.

Dad looked surprised to see me awake when he came downstairs, flanked by Mom. Overall though, they looked secretly satisfied that I was behaving normally. Inside though, I wasn't feeling the least bit normal. All those thoughts and feelings from the day before hadn't left. And I knew they wouldn't. They were especially highlighted when Dad said that he was going to tell Jake and Nessie in person why Edward and Bella weren't home.

That pretty much did it for me. I turned off the TV and was met by questioning looks, to which I answered that I was getting something from my room. I needed to be alone. It seemed that this was what life was going to be like from now on. Just me, alone in my room with a whirlwind of feelings that I didn't want to feel.


	8. I Haven't Seen You in a While

**I'm throwing you a curveball with this chapter because the narrator is neither Sam nor Olivia. In fact, this is the introduction of a new character. Again, thank you for commenting! Your love is much appreciated.**

**Chapter Seven: I Haven't Seen You in a While**

_Eli_

There was a conversation going on downstairs between my dad and Sam Uley, and I was hiding by the top of the staircase to pick up what I could. So much had been happening lately, and I was always out of the loop. It made me wish that I could just phase already, but that has yet to happen. I _have_ been growing a lot lately…but I had to focus on the conversation. "Olivia" was thrown around more that once. So she was back? I listened more carefully.

"Wait so the Cullens are down part of their coven?" Dad asked. A bit of excitement seeped into his voice. Though they were supposed to be on good terms, dad could never quite hide his resentment. This was new. Maybe things didn't go quite as planned in Italy.

"Yes," Sam replied forlornly. "I feel so guilty for it. When I told Nessie and Jake, Nessie started crying and Jake was furious. It was awful. And Olivia feels just as guilty. She hasn't been herself since before all this. We've been home for a week now and she's been extremely quiet and she rarely comes out of her room." Had I heard Sam correctly? That didn't sound like the Olivia I knew at all. She was usually social and one of those girls who is every place at once. Maybe she had changed a little since we were last close, but this seemed drastic.

Olivia was only a few months younger than me, but I was always a grade ahead due to her birthday being in September. When we were in diapers, she and I, along with Jill Cameron, played together all of the time. The trio lasted until sixth grade when Olivia and Jill drifted away. And I made friends with some of the guys at school since Jill's older sister Alyssa and my younger brother Spencer were the only other kids from the pack at the time.

I still miss them from time to time, especially Olivia. But it's not like we don't hang out with eachother, because we see eachother all of the time at school or parties with the pack. Hearing about Olivia triggered a feeling inside of me, like it was my responsibility to make her feel better.

"That's rough, Sam," Dad said sympathetically, pulling me back to the present. "Maybe we can do something to help. Eli might be able to talk to her." My mouth pulled into a smile. I could see where this was going and I retreated back to my room so it would seem like I wasn't eavesdropping.

"I don't know if that will work, Paul, but it's worth a shot," I heard Sam say.

"Alright…ELI!" Dad shouted up the stairs.

"Dad wants you Eli!" Spencer called from his room immediately. Any opportunity Spencer gets to be obnoxious, he'll take it.

"I have ears, Fifth Grader," I shot back.

"_Sixth_ Grader." But I was already on the stairs.

"Hi, Eli," Sam said when I entered the living room.

"Hey, Sam," I replied. To Dad: "You called?"

"So you know that Olivia got back a week ago," Dad started.

"Yeah. How is she doing?" I asked Sam, covering for the fact that I already knew how she was.

"Not to well. She hasn't been her self lately. And that's where you come in."

"Yeah, Eli. Do you think you could hang out with Olivia today?" Dad asked.

"Sure," I replied, completely ignoring the fact that they were using me to make her feel better. This was exactly the opportunity that I had been looking for since our group split up.

"Thank you, Eli," Sam said. "Since it's sunny and warm maybe you guys could go to the beach."

"Good idea. I'll go change into swim shorts and then I can go." I dashed back up the stairs and fished a pair of swim trunks out of my drawer, throwing my other shorts on the floor. Then I grabbed a towel from the linen closet and ran back down the stairs. Dad and Sam were still talking, but their conversation was coming to an end. I followed Sam outside and took shotgun in his old Ford Fiesta.

"Don't be offended when I say this but as Olivia's father, I am obligated to say it: Keep your hands off my daughter, okay? She's been through a lot and it's probably going to make it worse if you try anything," Sam said once he started driving.

"I wasn't planning to," I said honestly.

"Good." We were already at his house and he turned off the ignition. He told me to wait in the living room while he went upstairs to get Olivia. Meanwhile, Emily offered me some fresh baked cookies, which I couldn't refuse. We were both listening to what was going on upstairs though. I distinctly heard "No, dad," but Sam countered that by saying, "Eli's already here". She was quiet for a moment. The rest of the conversation was inaudible but a minute later Sam came down the stairs giving me thumbs up.

"Be careful with her, Eli," Emily warned. "She's been extra sensitive lately." I assured Emily that I would, but I wasn't sure if she was just exaggerating to get the point across. Finally, Olivia descended the stairs with a beach bag over her shoulder. She was wearing a t-shirt and shorts, but I could see the straps of her purple swimsuit tied behind her neck.

"Hey, Eli," she greeted me with little enthusiasm. She looked pretty terrible; her eyes were puffy and surrounded by dark circles as if she hadn't slept in weeks, and she looked like she had lost some weight. Her dark hair fell in think curtains around her face, highlighting the dark expression it held.

"Hey, Liv. It's good to see you," I replied with a smile.

"You too. Let's go." She led me outside and we started walking to the beach. It was simultaneously odd and awkward. She didn't say a single word on the way there. We dropped our stuff at a spot not too far from the ocean and just stood there for a minute, avoiding each other's eyes by looking out at the waves.

"My dad put you up to this didn't he," she said quietly.

"I'm not gunna lie to you. He did, but I would've come anyway," I replied.

"Hm." More silence.

"Do you want to swim?" I asked after a while. She shook her head. "Fine. Do you want to just talk, or something?" She shook her head again. Sam and Emily really weren't exaggerating about Olivia.

"Look, I'm just trying to make you feel better. I really have no idea what happened to you because I'm always out of the loop, but you don't have to tell me. Just talk to me or, like, smile or something." She gave me a tiny smile but it didn't reach her eyes. "That's fake and we both know it. You can't do this for much longer, Olivia. You've got the rest of your life ahead of you and if you're going to act like this, then it's really gunna suck to be you."

Finally, I got a reaction from her. Olivia's face turned red and she glared at me. "What the heck, Eli?" she shouted at me. "You think you can just waltz in here and tell me how to live my life after almost two years of not being friends anymore? Just leave me alone! Why would you ever think that you have the right to do that? Why would you think that I would listen?"

"Sorry, Liv. I just care about you, okay? No one wants to see you so depressed."

"You care about me?" she scoffed. "Where have you been these past two years, Eli?"

"Are you blaming me for pulling away? It was you and Jill who decided that you didn't want to hang out with me anymore. You were too busy being best friends with each other to still be friends with me. But I don't see Jill now. I'm the one who's here. Isn't that a reason to listen?"

"I won't talk to Jill," she whispered. That sure shut me up. And while I was in a stunned silence she picked up her bag and started walking away.

"Wait! Olivia, where are you going?" I shouted after her.

"Home. Away from you," she replied with acid. Now _that_ hurt.

"You're parents aren't going to like that."

"At this point, I really don't care." There was nothing I could do but let her continue out of sight. That definitely didn't go as planned. Some really awful stuff must have happened to her in Italy for her to be acting like this. But it was still uncalled for. I really didn't have the heart to leave the beach, so I just sat on my towel until someone called my name.

"Eli!" It was Sam. "Obviously that didn't work," he said when he reached me.

"She kind of yelled at me," I replied.

"I'm _really _sorry about that. You can see now why we're so desperate. Just don't give up on her. Maybe she needs a little more time but if you give up on her, she may never go back to normal." Knowing myself, I probably wouldn't have given up on her for long, but hearing the desperation in Sam's voice told me how persistent I would need to be.

"Alright," I sighed

"Thanks, Eli. I really believe that you can get through to her…eventually." I laughed half-heartedly. It could take months for her to get back to normal. "Come on. I'll give you a ride home."

"Thanks." We walked off the beach and over to his house. For the second time today, I sat in the passenger seat of Sam's old Fiesta and he drove me home.

"Tell everyone that I say hi," Sam said before I got out of the car.

"I will. Thanks again for the ride."

"No problem." I slammed the door behind me and stepped inside to find Spencer sitting on the steps with his nose in his DS, obviously trying to look like he wasn't waiting for me to come home.

"How was your date with Olivia?" he asked, a smug smile on his face. Spencer was such a pain in the butt.

"It wasn't a date," I sighed. I really didn't have the energy for this.

"Sure it was," he replied suggestively, attempting to raise his eyebrows unsuccessfully. He looked kind of crazy when he did that.

"No, Spence, it wasn't. You obviously heard what Sam was saying to Dad and me earlier, and nothing he was talking about had anything to do with a date." I purposely left out the part about Olivia yelling at me.

"Whatever. You can say that all you want, but I'll always know the truth." He was seriously asking for me to punch him, but I couldn't do that with our Mom in such close proximity. With my eyes closed, I took one long, deep breath.

"Are you _trying_ to annoy the crap out of me?" I asked finally.

"A little," he admitted. Decidedly done with me, he moved his focus back to his DS. The music from the video game was suddenly on full volume and he was blocking my way up the stairs. I was going to step over him, but we were interrupted when Mom called us from the kitchen.

"Eli and Spencer, I need you to set the table now or we won't have dinner." There was an audible groan, but nevertheless we walked back down the stairs and into the kitchen to grab the dinner wear. As usual, I was on plate and glass duty, and Spencer grabbed the silver wear and napkins. Once the table was set, we helped carry the dishes of food into the dining room. Dad burst through the back door just in time to start eating.

"How was patrol?" Mom asked as he kissed her forehead.

"Uneventful. It smells delicious in here," Dad replied. We sat down at the table and began serving ourselves dinner. "So, Eli, how did it go with Olivia?"

"Pretty bad," I snorted as I scooped sweet potatoes onto my plate (Mom was in a health kick).

"So Sam wasn't exaggerating," Dad sighed.

"That's what I thought, too. But she's really that bad. She didn't talk to me except to ask if Sam put me up to hanging out with her. And she wouldn't do anything so I kinda…well, not yelled at her, but told it to her like it is and she got angry and yelled at me and stormed off," I explained.

"Eli! That is no way to treat someone! You probably made it worse," Mom scolded.

"Yeah, Eli," Spencer added.

"No one asked you, fifth grader," I retorted.

"_Sixth_—"

"I really don't care."

"_Boys_," Dad reproved loudly. Neither of us wanted to face the wrath of Paul Lahote so we shut up. "You probably got through to her, though if she reacted so strongly. Even if it was only a little bit, it could make a difference."

"I hope so," I replied. Spencer dominated the conversation for the rest of dinner, and I didn't object. When we were finished eating and the table was cleared, I retreated up to my room. As I tossed a stuffed basketball through a plastic hoop I realized that as annoyed I was at Olivia, there was no way that I would give up on her…yet.


	9. Tears and Progress

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>p style="max-height: 999999px;"strongI am super duper sorry that this took so long, but my schedule since September has been ridiculously busy. Luckily, I have been writing this chapter, even if in tiny spurts. Thanks to everyone who has favorited and commented on this story. I hope you enjoy this chapter!strong/p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; text-align: center;"strongChapter Eight: Tears and Progressstrong/p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px; text-align: center;"emOliviaem/p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;"Steam was probably coming out of my ears. I knew that going to the beach with Eli Lahote was a bad idea, but I did it anyway to appease my dad. When I threw the front door of my house open I ignored my Mom and Dad, who were sitting in the living room, and stormed up the stairs in a huff. Dad called after me, but I didn't turn back; I slammed my bedroom door and kicked my desk, which only resulted in a painful, throbbing toe.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;"I wasn't angry with Eli for confronting me, even after we hadn't been close friends for a while, like I let on. I wasn't even sure if Eli was whom I was angry at. Really, I was angry because he was right. A small part of me was annoyed that I couldn't just get over my depression before this, but now I was legitimately angry with myself for it. A slight creak indicated that the front door opened downstairs as if someone had left the house, but my thoughts were too distracting for me to care.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;"For the past week I only knew some of the effect that my changes had on my parents and now I knew that I was really hurting them. And for a stupid reason. I was frustrated at myself for allowing this to continue for so long. Everyone was safe now; no one had died, and yet it was like I was grieving. Part of me before was hiding because I didn't want my parents to see this, but really that was hurting them more. Why couldn't I make this right? There was a knock at the door and I replied with a rather cold, "what do you want?"p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;"My dad let out an exasperated "Olivia…" when he entered my room.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Sorry," I muttered.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""You don't owe me an apology, Liv. But you owe Eli one." Great. So this was where this was going. I let out an audible sigh. "What happened to make you leave?"p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""That's between Eli and me, Dad," I replied defensively.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;"Predictably, Dad said, "I just want you to apologize to him. Maybe you can give him another chance." He seemed desperate and hopeful that I would allow Eli to get through to me.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Fine. Tomorrow I'll go over and apologize to him," I said without thinking. But this was good. Dad's resulting smile was worth it. When he left the room, I felt a glimmer of hope that I wouldn't be permanently depressed.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;"So there I was the next day, standing awkwardly on the Lahote's doorstep. As soon as I rang the bell, Eli's little brother Spencer pulled open the door and started talking animatedly. While he was going through his speech, Eli walked up behind him, clamping his hand over Spencer's mouth.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""What are you doing here?" Eli asked. He didn't sound particularly pleased, but he didn't sound angry either. Before responding, I glanced at Spencer and Eli got the memo. "Scram, Spence," he said, shoving Spencer slightly.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Why should I? Olivia doesn't want me to leave, do you Liv?" Spencer asked hopefully.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Sorry, Spence, but I need to talk to Eli alone," I felt bad to admit. "But next time you can stick around," I added quickly as he sulkily walked away. Hopefully that wouldn't last long.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""So…" Eli prompted.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Do you think you could come over for lunch?" I asked despite my lack of confidence. "My parents aren't home so we can talk in private."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Um, yeah. I'll go ask my mom." At least he didn't say no. "You're welcome to come in and wait," he added as an afterthought. It was weird because the Lahote household was like a second home to me, but after all this time I felt out of place. Eli walked over to the basement door and started down the stairs, but I waited at the top. I could hear him asking his mom, who was presumably in the laundry room, for permission to have lunch with me.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Of course you can! You don't have to ask for permission, Eli. I think Olivia could probably use the company of someone other than Sam and Emily." Rachel's voice carried up the stairsp  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Yeah, thanks Mom. I'm going to head out now," Eli replied.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Have fun, sweetie." I stepped back so I wouldn't be in Eli's way when he climbed back up the stairs.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""It's a go," he said to me.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Great." I followed him out the front door and we walked to my house without talking. Luckily, my parents were desperate enough to get me back to normal to leave the house at my request so they wouldn't hear me talking to Eli. The silence was awkward, though, and it lasted as I unlocked the front door and walked through the house to the kitchen to start making lunch.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Is grilled cheese okay?" I asked eventually. It better have been because that's about all I could make on my own.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Yeah, I'll eat anything," Eli replied. Luckily, grilled cheese was quick to make because I was starting to lose my nerve. It took about five minutes in the pan for the sandwiches to get sufficiently brown and I put them on plates. Eli thanked me when I handed him a plate, and finally, we sat down at the kitchen table.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Olivia," Eli said after his first bite. "I'm sorry for saying what I said yesterday. It was out of line." Wow. This was more than I expected from him. And he made it easier for me to apologize to him.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""No, emI'mem sorry for blowing up about it. Everything you said was true," I replied./p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""I just said all that stuff because I was angry," Eli tried.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Even if you did, it's still true. I've been trying so hard to get better because I don't want to hurt my mom and dad, but I just can't. I'm still so scared, Eli, and I don't think I can just forget about what happened." I was on the verge of tears, so I looked up and clenched my teeth in a pointless attempt to prevent the tears from spilling over. "I don't want them to see me like this, but when I'm alone I am forced to think about it and I get so scared sometimes. And I want to be back to normal just as much as you do and my parents do. Even though it's over I still feel like I'm in the middle of a terrible nightmare."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;"The floodgates opened then and I sobbed uncontrollably. My arms were folded on the table and I put my head down on them so Eli wouldn't see my face. On top of all the other emotion I was experiencing, I was embarrassed that he was seeing me like this. This would probably repel him from me, and then I wouldn't have any way out of my depression. But to my surprise, I felt a hand on my back, moving in calming circles. I lifted my tearstained face and stared into his eyes. Hopefully he could see how grateful I was that he came over to comfort me.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""I'm so sorry, Olivia," Eli said, pulling me toward him so I could cry into his chest. "I really want to help you get better. Saying all this stuff out loud probably helps, right?" It did help; part of the weight was now lifted off my shoulders and placed onto his. I nodded into his chest. "I'm glad that I could be here to listen, then," he said enthusiastically. "If there's anything else you want to tell me, maybe that will help, too."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""I'm not ready to do that," I replied in between sniffles. I was probably wrecking his shirt, but he didn't seem to mind.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""That's fine. But when you're ready, I'll listen." First Eli and I weren't really friends at all, and then we were angry at eachother, and now he was comforting me like we were best friends again. Even I was having trouble keeping up. After a few more minutes, my sobbing died down and we finished lunch with a different mood than before. I made a comment about ruining his shirt by crying on it, but he didn't seem to care. It was kind of a relief to be able to talk to someone like this, though I did feel a little guilty for accepting his help. Fixing me was going to take a long time even if I felt somewhat normal now.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Do you want to come back to my house? Spencer is probably dying to hang out with you. Maybe we could take him to a playground or something…" Eli offered.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Yeah, sure," I replied with a small smile. Could this have been my first smile since before I was in Italy? And I could tell that Eli noticed because he now had a satisfied smile on his face. He helped me clear the dishes before we walked out the door. On the way to Eli's house, I called my parents so they wouldn't worry.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Is everything ok, Olivia?" Mom asked after the first ring.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Everything's fine," I sighed. She probably had her phone in her hand the whole time she and Dad were out, anticipating my call. "I just wanted to let you know that Eli and I are probably going to the playground with Spencer."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""That's great! Thanks for letting me know." Mom could barely hide her enthusiasm, and I was kind of taken aback by it. At least she was happy.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Um, thanks."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Have fun, sweetie! I love you."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Love you too, Mom."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Bye." By this time we were already at the Lahote house, and when we walked through the door, Spencer was sitting on the steps, obviously waiting for all of the details. By the look on his face, I could tell that he wasn't expecting to see me back. He had grown so much since I had stopped being friends with Eli. Even though I had seen him on occasion since then, it took me by surprise that he no longer looked like a little kid.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""How would you like to go to the playground?" Eli asked Spencer. A forced look of disgust spread across Spencer's face.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Why would I want to do emthatem? The playground is for little kids." Unless I was mistaken, the frequent glances at me meant that he was only saying that to impress me and show me how mature he had become./p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Oh. We were just wondering if you would come with us. I guess we'll just go by ourselves, then," I said. Spencer took a minute to decide what to say.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""If you guys were really going to go anyway, then I guess I could go with you."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Thanks, Spence," Eli said. "Go let Mom know what we're up to."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Fine…" Spencer turned and shouted up the steps, "MOM! I'M GOING TO THE PLAYGROUND WITH OLIVIA AND ELI."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""That's fine, Spence! Just be back by dinner unless you want to be yelled at by your father," Rachel shouted back down at only half the volume that Spencer used. I heard her just as easily.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""OK!"p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Could you have said that any louder?" Eli asked, annoyed.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""I don't know but I could try—" Eli's hand clapped over Spencer's mouth before he could finish his sentence.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Let's get out of here. Do you want to borrow a bike, Liv? We have a few extra."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""Yeah, thanks," I replied. So many memories of Eli and I biking this same path with Jill on the third bike instead of Spencer filled my mind. We were so young then and I missed the innocence, especially now after I had met the Volturi. The thought sent a shudder down my spine. When we arrived at the park, we immediately got on the swings, like we used to do. The rushing of the wind and the feel of the mist on my skin gave me a chill, but it felt refreshing.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;"We were just chatting as we were swinging when Spencer blurted out, "You two are double dating."p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;""What?" I asked, panicked. Then I realized what he meant; Eli and I were swinging at the same height. "Oh, I get it. I guess we are." Eli smiled at me from the next swing. Hopefully, he didn't hear the panic in my voice before because I didn't want him to think that I didn't like him. Quite the opposite, actually, I just couldn't think of being on a date with Eli. What if I couldn't really get better? I would end up hurting him just like I hurt my parents.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;"This thought lost itself somewhere my mind for the rest of the afternoon. I was having such a great time with the Lahote boys. Eli had really grown into himself since middle school in more ways than one. He had become kind of beautiful since he was young, and he was so genuine with his personality. After the end of our friendship, I had never had as much fun as I was having with Eli and Spencer now. I didn't want to leave, but a mock-angry phone call from Dad about how Paul was going to have our heads if Eli and Spencer weren't home on time finally got us to leave.p  
>p style="max-height: 999999px;"When I was lying in my bed later that night, I thought about the great time I had, but another, new thought was fighting for my attention. What if I hurt Eli by allowing him to help me? Though I had made so much progress today, who knew if it would last? The tiniest thing might set me off again into a spiraling pit of depression. All I could do now was hope for a good night's sleep and an even better tomorrow.p  
>div  
>div  
>div 


	10. Sometimes Not Listening Pays Off

**I am so incredibly sorry that this took so long! This chapter was difficult for me to write for some reason, so that's why it took me so long and it's shorter than usual. Plus I've been busy with IRL stuff and I started writing another fanfiction called Future Nostalgia. I'm really super duper proud of it so I hope you read it! Anyway, this story is probably going to come to an end in a few chapters, but that's just the way it goes. I hope you forgive me enough to enjoy and review this chapter.**

**-Juliebean**

**Chapter Nine: Sometimes Not Listening Pays Off**

_Eli_

As usual I woke up sometime close to noon and pounded down the stairs to get breakfast. There were only a few weeks left until school re-started and that meant that there wasn't much time left to help Olivia. I hadn't realized that it would take this long, but I couldn't stop now. School would be an obstacle though since it would be a big time-suck. As I shoveled more cereal into my mouth I wondered whether Olivia would actually be able to go back to school. It was a valid question since emotionally she had been so unstable recently. For a moment I wanted to ask my mom, but I thought better of it.

Spencer was at a friend's house for the time being, so I knew I would be able to call Olivia and not be overheard. She picked up in a few rings and greeted me with a cold tone. Uh-oh.

"Hey, Liv. Do you want to hang out? Spencer's not here to interrupt our plans…" I said hopefully.

"Thanks, Eli, but I'd rather be left alone today," she replied in the same blank tone.

"Um…Okay. I guess I'll see you later then." Olivia hung up, leaving me confused. Was I supposed to respect her wishes or was this a sign that she was getting bad again? I decided to listen to her, at least for now. There wasn't much to do, so I walked into the laundry room to see if my mom needed any help.

"How sweet of you!" she said, kissing my cheek. "But I'm okay."

"Alright. Where's Dad?" I asked.

"Where do you think?" she replied.

"Right. Patrol." I was hoping that he could give me something to do, but I would have to wait until he got back. That left me no choice but to go back upstairs and watch TV to pass the time. It was just my luck that there was nothing on. There was a part of my brain nagging me to go over to Olivia's house anyway and make her do something so she wouldn't stay so depressed, but I still wasn't sure. Spencer burst through the door then, calling to mom to make him lunch.

"Geez, Pipsqueak! Manners!" I reprimanded.

"You wait. When I get to the middle school I won't be a pipsqueak anymore," Spencer retorted.

"Sure you won't, pipsqueak," I scoffed.

"Boys, please. Can I just have one moment of peace?" Mom asked as she came into the kitchen and started collecting ingredients.

"You can get one from me, but Spencer has a little trouble with that concept."

"Eli," she cautioned, but I shrugged it off. Spencer still had a lot of growing up to do. Mom went the quick-and-easy route and made us some sandwiches and Dad walked through the door just in time to eat lunch with us.

"Perfect timing," Mom said to him, giving him a peck on the lips.

"You know that I have a food-radar, Rach," he laughed, helping himself to a sandwich and some chips. "So, how was your morning?"

"The same as usual. Spencer went over to play with his friend Jason," Mom filled him in.

"We weren't playing!" Spencer protested, causing me to laugh. Mom shot me a warning look as he continued. "We were making a stop-motion movie!"

"That's pretty intense, Spencer. How's it going?" Dad asked.

"Not bad. It takes a really long time to shoot though," Spencer said through a mouthful of chips.

"What about you Eli?" Dad turned to me.

"I've been at home all day," I responded.

"You didn't go see Olivia?"

"No…" Then I got an idea. "But I think I'll go over there now," I said, pushing away my empty plate.

"Ooo! Can I come?" Spencer asked excitedly. This was exactly what I was hoping for.

"I don't know…" But this was just to egg him on more. Olivia may be able to turn me down, but she wouldn't want to turn down my little brother.

"_Please?_ We had so much fun last time!"

"Well, okay. But you have to behave yourself."

"Yes!" Spencer shouted, jumping up from his seat. "See you guys later!" He dashed over to the door and I followed him at a slightly slower pace.

"Not so fast boys!" Dad called after us. We turned back to see what he had to say. "You two need to promise not to bother Olivia. There's a fine line between being helpful and being bothersome." To be honest, I didn't know that my dad even _knew_ the word "bothersome" but he had a point. We both promised, and Mom made sure that I had my phone and an umbrella before we walked out the door.

It was a good thing that Mom made us take the umbrella because it was raining pretty hard outside. We walked much faster than usual so we would be under the shelter of a roof even sooner. Spencer didn't waste a second of that time with silence. Right out the door he asked me, "So what are we going to do today? We can't go to the park because it's raining."

"The park was a one time thing, but I honestly don't know if we will be doing anything," I admitted. "Olivia kind of didn't want to hang out today."

"Then why are we going over there? You heard what Dad said Eli, and you promised—"

"I know. But she sounded like she really needed me right now. And if she still won't hang out with me, then I'll leave her alone."

"Whatever, Eli. Why did you even bother bringing me if it's just between you and her."

"I'm kind of banking on the fact that she won't want to say no to you because…" I trailed off, thinking that Spencer would probably be mad if I finished that sentence.

"Because I'm young. I know. The little brother always gets the pity," he finished for me.

"And you usually get what you want," I added as we walked up to the Uley's front door. Spencer shrugged and he seemed like he was going to say something else, but the door opened and Emily greeted us with a smile on her face.

"Eli and Spencer! What a surprise! Come on in and dry off." We followed her into the living room to find Olivia sitting on the couch watching a cooking show. She looked at us when we walked in, and she didn't look too happy to see us. Or at least to see me. I decided that it would be better to keep quiet and let Spencer get the ball rolling.

"Hey Olivia! Do you want to come over and hang out with us today?" he asked hopefully. Olivia took a minute to answer, waiting until Emily left the room.

"Um…yeah. Sure. That would be nice," she said in that same cold tone that she used on the phone that morning. She gave Spencer a fake smile, and I knew that I made the right choice in coming here.

"Why don't you guys stay here?" Emily offered. "You probably don't want to go back out in the rain. And I was about to make pizza bagels if you're hungry."

"That sounds great. Thanks, Emily," I said. I wasn't expecting to get pizza bagels out of the deal, but that was just an added bonus.

"We're so glad to have you boys. Right Liv?" Emily looked over at Olivia expectantly, but she gave an indifferent nod and Emily's face fell. Olivia winced in response; It was obviously killing her to hurt her mother in this way, and if she continued to push me away like this, then she would just make things worse.

"What should we do?" Spencer asked. "Maybe we could play video games or watch a movie or something since it's raining."

"I don't know, Spence. I wasn't really expecting company today…" Olivia stared at me when she said that, her face finally showing some emotion. She looked annoyed with me but I hoped that it wouldn't stay this way.

"We can come up with something," Spencer said without hesitation. He must have not noticed that Olivia was angry.

"How about you pick out a board game. You remember where they are, right?" Olivia suggested.

"The playroom upstairs right? In the closet?"

"Yep." Spencer dashed up the stairs. That was a good idea on her part because we both knew that Spencer was really indecisive. Now that he was out of the way, Olivia finally talked to me.

"I told you that I wanted to be left alone." Her annoyance finally broke through her voice, but there was also an undertone of gratitude.

"I couldn't let you go back to the way you were before," I replied.

"SHOULD WE PLAY MONOPOLY, SCRABBLE, APPLES TO APPLES, OR CARDS?" Spencer shouted down the stairs.

"IT DOESN'T MATTER, SPENCE! JUST MAKE A DECISION!" I shouted back.

"Look, Eli," Olivia said, bringing me back to our conversation. "I'm grateful for what you're doing, but I have a feeling that you…how should I say this? You might want a little more than friendship when this is all over."

"So what if I do?" I asked, startled. "It's not a crime to have a crush on somebody," I said under my breath, hoping that she wouldn't catch that comment.

"You're right. It's not a crime. But I don't think that I'll be able to reciprocate those feelings. Like, I can't even feel flattered that you think of me like that. That's how bad I am right now. So I can't let you think that you have a chance because I can't be in a relationship. Not now, and maybe not ever. I've already hurt my parents and I don't want to hurt you too," she said softly, with increasing intensity. This was one of the reasons why I liked her so much. She was so selfless, always thinking of how others felt before thinking about herself.

"I'll be fine, Olivia. I can deal with that kind of pain. I've dealt with it before." She did a double take when she realized what I meant, though I hadn't exactly kept it a secret when we were younger. "Besides, you'd be hurting your parents and me more if you push me away now. Look at how far we've come!" I pointed out.

"You can't always be the night in shining armor, Eli. Some cuts are too deep. I don't think I'll ever fully heal. I'll still accept your help, but you need to keep in mind that I'll never be the same. No one can just snap their fingers and expect a happy ending." Olivia really _had_ been changed; she never used to be this dark. Spencer sprinted down the stairs and Emily walked in with a platter of pizza bagels, as if to emphasize that the conversation was over.

Olivia only nibbled at her bagel, while Spencer and I gobbled up the snacks. Her mood seemed to have changed a little, and as we played the board game she seemed to loosen up even more. By the end, she actually thanked me for coming, but I still kept what she said in mind. She was still incredibly broken. I knew she still wouldn't tell me, but I needed to know now, more than ever, what happened to her in Italy.


	11. Nearing Summer's End

**I don't have much to say other than this: things are starting to return to normal for Olivia, but there is plenty of excitement to come. Other than that, thank you for reading and reviewing.**

**Chapter Ten: Nearing Summer's End**

_Olivia_

Giving Eli a chance was a good idea. For the past few weeks I actually felt somewhat normal. There were still days when I felt depressed, but they were becoming few and far between. The only thing that was worrying me now was that Eli's feelings for me seemed to grow. Even with all this improvement I was still broken. There was still no way that I would be able to let him fall in love with me. I did everything I could to avoid anything that would remind me of what happened, including pushing away my best friend Jill. I felt awful about it, but if I let myself be reminded, I would have to start from scratch and Eli would want to help me even more and I would end up hurting him for real.

School was going to start in one week and I wasn't looking forward to it at all. Luckily, my dad was extra careful about making sure that what happened to me stayed within the pack, so no one else would know what happened. But the experience still changed me, and since Eli was starting high school this year, he probably wouldn't be able to help as much if I became depressed again. I was really starting to need him, and I didn't want to admit it to myself.

No one else seemed to be as stressed out as me about the new school year, though. Tonight the Camerons were having a back-to-school barbecue and the whole pack would be there. I was afraid to face Jill after avoiding her for so long for two reasons: first, she would remind me too much of the night that _they_ took me. And second, that she would be hurt that I stayed away from her. But maybe now was the right time; after all, I had made so much improvement recently. Seeing Jill might be just the thing that I needed.

"Hey Liv, it's time to go," Dad said, peering his head through my door.

"Alright," I replied following him down the stairs to meet Mom. She was carrying four large foil pans of baked goods and they smelled amazing. Dad tried to sneak a cookie, but Mom pulled the pans away.

"Not now, Sam," she chastised.

"But they smell so good," Dad whined playfully, kissing her cheek. He took two of the pans from her and let us walk out the door before him.

"I know you're not excited for school, Livie, but I'm sure that Jill will make things better for you," Mom started. "I bet she's really excited to see you tonight since it's been so long since you two got together."

"Yeah," I replied in an almost bored tone.

"Aren't you excited to see her too?" She asked, concerned.

"Of course I am." But I was distracted. We were nearing the short cut that I took _that_ _night_ and I was starting to panic a little. It was like dad was reading my mind, because he led us the regular way and I let out a sigh of relief.

"I can't believe how old you kids are now," Dad said, changing the subject for me. Since I was little, I was a huge daddy's girl and he always knew me better than I knew myself. After all this, I was so glad that didn't change. Even after hurting him so much he was still here when I needed him. I guess that's love.

"I remember when Spencer was a newborn and you and Jill and Eli would always hide in the closet of whoever's house it was and played games until we pulled you out," Mom added affectionately.

"And Alexandra…" Dad shook his head. Alexandra was Jill's 16-year-old sister and she was exactly what my parents hoped I wouldn't become. Jill and I had spent many days vowing that we would never end up like her. Alex was tall and skinny and gorgeous, but that wasn't the problem. She was extremely popular and wore tight fitting and extremely revealing clothes. It wasn't that she was mean, at least not to me, it was just that Alex spent most of her time at parties listening to top 40 songs and ogling at hot guys.

"She grew up _really_ fast. She was the sweetest, most innocent little thing…"

"And now she's kind of not," I finished. Mom was too happy that I contributed to the conversation to reprimand me for saying anything bad about Alex. "I'm pretty sure that she's been drunk a few times this summer."

"How do you know that?" Dad asked, cautioning but curious.

"Jill told me," I replied with a shrug.

"Now's not the time to be talking about this. We're almost there," Mom chastised. Sure enough we were less than a block away. When we got to the door, I only had to knock on the door once before Kim opened the door, their Dalmatian, Pongo, on her heals.

"It's so good to see you! It's been too long! Come inside!" Kim greeted excitedly. Jared joined us in the kitchen and while they talked with my parents, I stroked Pongo's soft fur. I remembered when they got him as a puppy and Jill and Alexandra named him after Pongo in _101 Dalmatians_. For weeks after that I begged my parents for a puppy of my own, but Mom didn't like dogs so much, and Dad sided with her. Pongo was as close to my own dog as I would get.

"Olivia, all the kids are outside. You should go join them," Kim told me.

"Okay. Thanks, Kim," I said with a small smile before walking into the kitchen and through the back door. Pongo was on my heels as if he was going make sure that nothing bad would happen. I gave him an extra scratch behind the ears as I surveyed the scene. Eli and Spencer were attacking the table with appetizers while his parents talked with Claire and Quil. Their daughter Lucy was running circles around them until Quil scooped her up. The other pack members who didn't have kids were talking in a group; back-to-school obviously had no significance for them now that they had graduated or dropped out of school. All of the pack members, of course, except Collin, who had Alex pinned against the wall.

He was kissing her rather aggressively, one hand grabbing her butt while the other hovered around her waist. And Alex was obviously enjoying herself very much. It was really quiet disgusting, but at least Collin imprinted on her. If Alex didn't have Collin, her hair would be blonde and she would be with a different guy every other week. This was exactly why Jill and I didn't want to be like her. And as I was thinking of her, Jill saw me and rushed over.

"Olivia! I'm so glad you're here!" She said, giving me a hug.

"Me too. I'm sorry I've been avoiding you. It's just…"

"I totally forgive you for not wanting to hang out with me. I've only heard rumors about what happened to you, but I would probably do the same thing if I were you. And if you need anything, I'll be here for you," she assured me, without so much as a breath in between each sentence. Now I wondered why I avoided her. This was just what I needed.

"Thanks, Jill," I said with a smile. "May I ask what the deal is with Alex and Collin?" She rolled her eyes. Collin and Alex were still at it with even more intensity.

"You're lucky you've been away from here so long. It's usually much worse than this. And if you can imagine her outfit being more revealing than this, my dad had to make her 'tone it down' from what she wanted to wear before." I cringed at the thought of an outfit even worse than her tight fitting tank top and super-short shorts. "But you probably don't want to hear any more about my sister. How have you been?"

"I've been hanging in there, I guess." I knew that she heard about my depression since that was no secret, but I was glad that she didn't know much more than that.

"That's good. Do you want any food? Rachel made her famous chip-dip," Jill offered.

"Oh, yum! Let's get some!" We made a beeline for the food table where Eli and Spencer were still schmoozing.

"Oh, hey Olivia," Eli said.

"Hi, Eli." Jill and I grabbed plates and started filling them with food. It seemed to be an unspoken agreement that Eli and I wouldn't talk about the time we had been spending together, especially not in front of Jill.

"Guess what guys? We'll get to be in the same school this year!" Spencer announced excitedly.

"Oh yeah! Wow, this is going to be weird!" Jill responded, ruffling his hair.

"No it won't. It will be fun! It's a shame that Eli will be at the high school because we won't be able to all be in school together."

"Are you excited for high school, Eli?" Jill asked.

"Yeah. I heard that it's better than middle school so it will be a nice change," he replied.

"Pretty much anything is better than middle school," Jill remarked. We all laughed, except for Spencer who just stared at us. For a moment it felt like the old times.

"You're just trying to make me think it's horrible," Spencer said. "Right?" He actually seemed kind of worried.

"Sixth grade is alright, but after that it's not so great," I replied. "Sorry Spence. I'm sure you'll like it though." We continued to talk for a few minutes until our parent's came outside with tons of hamburgers and hot dogs to put on the grill. It was funny to watch how quickly Alex and Collin broke apart when Jared came through the door. My parents were talking to Jake and Nessie now, who seemed more miserable than usual.

Then I realized that it was my fault; Nessie's parents were stuck in Italy because of me. The anxiety started to set in again when Eli tapped me on the shoulder. I turned around to look at him, and while Pongo trying to steal some of the meat on the grill distracted Jill, he pulled me aside.

"What's wrong, Liv?" he asked.

"It's nothing," I covered, trying to ignore the panicky feeling in my chest.

"Are you sure?" I definitely didn't have him convinced.

"Yeah," I lied again. To avoid anything else that would set me off, I went over to say hi to Lucy. Spending time with little kids was like a therapy to me. Jill joined me after a minute and Lucy had us both completely engrossed in what she had to say about starting kindergarten this year. We even got to hear stories that we probably weren't supposed to hear about Claire's second pregnancy.

"Mommy said that there are _two_ babies in her belly and if one's a boy she's gunna name it Quil," Lucy told us excitedly.

"That's so cool, Lucy! Are you excited to be a big sister?" I asked her.

"Duh! It's gunna be sooo fun!" Jill and I giggled at Lucy's adorable mannerisms.

"You have to be really nice to your little brothers or sisters, Lucy, or else they won't like you," said a voice from behind me. It was Alex, without Collin for once. "Hey, Liv. I just wanted to say hi since you haven't been over here in a while. I hope everything's alright. If you need anything and you don't feel like talking to my sister, I'm all ears."

"Thanks, Alex." She gave me a hug, before strutting back to make out with Collin some more. As much as she bothered me sometimes, Alex was like an older sister to me. I guess she felt like it was her responsibility to make sure I was okay. "That was interesting," I commented.

"Yeah. That's a new one for her," Jill replied. She was about to say something else, but Jared announced that the food was ready and everyone headed toward the grill to start eating. Jill and I headed indoors with our food, and Eli followed. After the initial awkwardness, we fell into our old habits and actually had a great time.

"You know, Eli," Jill said as we got up to get dessert. "It really is a shame that you're going to be at the high school without us. We should all hang out again."

"Yeah that'd be great," he replied with a smile. "I really missed hanging out with you guys."

"I agree," I added.

"Aw guys!" Jill gushed, pulling us into a group hug. "We get to be a family again!" And she was right. It was like the puzzle pieces coming back together after being blown apart. But I still felt like there were some pieces missing, but I couldn't tell what they were. We hung out throughout the rest of the party until it was time to leave. For once, I was actually happy and I was upset that it was time to leave.

"Thank you for coming, Liv! Come over anytime!" Jill said.

"Thanks, Jill! And I'll see you soon too, right Eli?" I asked, playing it like we hadn't been hanging out on a regular basis.

"Definitely," he replied with a wink. My parents nearly had to drag me out of the Cameron house, but they didn't seem to mind at all. The walk home was so much more lighthearted than before. But I was exhausted and as soon as we made it home, I took a quick shower before going to bed.

It was then that I got an idea of one of the pieces I was missing. A few weeks ago, when I told Eli about my depression, he suggested that telling him what happened in Italy would make me feel better. This had to be it. It wouldn't fix everything, but it seemed like it was finally time to tell him. Though he hadn't said anything, I knew he was eager to hear the story, and who was I to deny him that when I already denied him a romantic relationship? I made a mental note to invite him to the beach the next day to tell him where we wouldn't be overheard. I could already feel the weight coming off my shoulders as I fell asleep.


	12. Sooner Or Later I Explode

**I am super duper sorry for the delay! I have never been this busy before. Take this chapter as my apology, since some pretty intense stuff happens, if I do say so myself. The chapter title comes from the Swedish title translation of the book**_** The Fault In Our Stars**_** by John Green. Happy holidays, and happy reading!**

**Chapter Eleven: Sooner Or Later I Explode**

_Eli_

For a few minutes, there were no clouds to obscure the sun setting over La Push beach, turning the sky into swirls of orange and pink. This morning, Olivia had called to ask me to meet her at the beach. The urgency of her tone made me regret that I was spending the entire day out, but I had to get school supplies and run errands with my mom. It was weird, because she sounded upset over the phone but also anxious. She was obviously nervous about something, but I didn't know what.

We made plans to meet up this evening, after I had a chance to come home and eat dinner. I didn't want to get my hopes up, but a small part of me thought that maybe she was going to finally tell me what happened to her. For the rest of the day, I couldn't hide my anticipation for our meeting. My mom finally voiced her curiosity when we were eating lunch at a diner in Forks, but I brushed off her questions. After all, I didn't actually know what was going to happen.

It was a long day out that including stops at multiple stores and a visit with my Uncle Jake and Nessie. Spencer, as usual, was over-excited about everything we did, but I was too busy thinking ahead to this evening to enjoy our outing. When we finally got home I was in a huge rush to get out of the house. Both my parents noticed how antsy I was during dinner.

"What's eating you, Eli?" Dad asked between mouthfuls of steak.

"Hm? Oh." I decided to just tell the truth. There wasn't anything important to hide anyway. "I'm meeting Olivia after dinner. I think she's going to tell me something important tonight."

"What did I tell you about bothering her, Eli?" Dad cautioned.

"She invited me, Dad. It's not a problem," I replied defensively.

"Alright," he gave a non-committal sigh. It seemed like we were finished with the topic, and we went back to our previous conversation about going back to school. But when I got up from the table, Dad gestured for me to come into the kitchen with him.

"Just be careful, okay?" he warned me. "We can all see that Olivia's been getting better thanks to you, but she's sill emotionally unstable. Sam is already pretty broken up about what happened. He doesn't need your help."

"Got it, Dad." I turned toward the back door, but he stopped me again.

"Have fun, Eli," he said, smiling and giving me an affectionate pat on the back. I returned the smile and finally made it through the back door. In my excitement to meet Olivia, I started sprinting toward the beach, wondering for the hundredth time that day why she was so anxious over the phone. I hoped against hope that today was the day that I would find out what really happened to make her so depressed. When I was about a block away, I slowed my stride so that when I reached Olivia, I would not seem over eager.

I clutched at a stitch in my side while I as I walked the rest of the way to the beach. Arriving out-of-breath and obviously excited probably wouldn't go over too well. I tried to hide my feelings for Olivia, but sometimes they would slip through in something I said or something I did and she would get a pained look on her face. It wasn't that I didn't understand why she didn't want me feeling this way; if she hated me at this point I still would love her, or at least really like her.

It took me a moment to locate Olivia, but I eventually found her pacing at the edge of the beach a few yards away. "Hey Liv!" I said as I rushed to her side. Her head snapped up as if she was completely absorbed in her thoughts before I intruded.

"Oh, hi, Eli," she replied kicking the little stones that made up the beach into the trees that hugged the shore. When we were younger we used to hide out in that part of the forest to escape our parents and play make-believe. She opened her mouth, but closed it again. What was making her act this way?

"So what's up?" I prompted her.

"I want to talk to you. In private," she exhaled, stepping further into the cover of the trees.

"Sure. You can tell me anything," I replied with caution, following her until we reached a slight clearing with large, moss-covered stones scattered across the forest floor. The sound of cicadas was dying down for the evening as we sat on the same rocks that we claimed as kids. So much nostalgia. Olivia turned to me with a final deep breath before beginning.

"Things have been going really well," she articulated slowly "And you've really helped me get better. I'll never be perfectly back to normal, but I think that something might get me close to cured, for lack of a better word. You said that thing about it making me feel better to tell you what happened and… I think you're right." The words exited her mouth as a whisper and an excited shiver shot up my spine. I tried to hide my excitement, but she read it right away.

"Just, please don't tell anyone what I'm going to tell you. You're the only person who will know about this other that me, and it's painful enough to have experienced it without having the entire pack know about it."

"You didn't tell your parents?" I asked incredulously, honored that Olivia decided to only tell me her secret...another reason why I thought we should be together.

"No. It would have hurt them too much. I haven't had the strength to say anything about it until now. And even now I'm a little shaky," Olivia explained, failing to meet my eyes.

"Wow. Then I definitely won't tell anyone," I declared. She gave me a watery smile and began to absentmindedly play with the end of her ponytail, twisting and turning it in her fingers. Though my promise of secrecy seemed to make her feel better, Olivia always played with her hair like that when she was nervous or anxious.

"Thank you for understanding. So…I'm sure you remember when it happened," she began. "I went to Jill's house to hang out and I ended up eating dinner there, so it was starting to get dark when I was walking home. You know the shortcut that I always took. I took it as usual and…someone said my name." Her voice had almost reduced to a breath, and she took a moment to collect herself, biting her bottom lip in a way that suggested that she was trying not to cry.

"It was the…Volturi. Four of them in black cloaks just like in the stories. And I tried to run but the one, the only girl…Jane…it was more painful than anything," Olivia's voice broke at the end but she didn't cry yet. I knew so little about what happened to her that this alone part made my jaw drop in disbelief.

"I was surrounded and they wanted me to come with them to Italy and I tried to say no, but they just tortured me more. One of them lifted me from the ground and ran away with me to a car and they took me to the airport. And we boarded a plane and there was nothing I could do." A lone tear finally slid down her cheek followed by a few more. I reached out a took her hand, but she said, "I'm okay."

"Are you sure?" I asked.

"I…maybe. But I can't stop now," she replied in between sobs, sounding determined. I still held her hand when she started again. "When we got to Italy…from what I saw, it was beautiful, but they immediately took me to their headquarters. We had to go through tunnels underground and then up an elevator into a lobby with a human receptionist. _Gianna_," Olivia spat out her name, the anger creating a pause in the tears. "The traitor," she whispered with even more acid, her hand clenching into a fist in mine. Now I was starting to get a little agitated, but I could tell that there was worse to come.

"They have a throne room. They even gave me a bedroom and food before it really started. You remember how they are in the stories right?"

"Yeah. There are three of them that are like kings, right? But the one is sort of in charge of the others," I answered, looking at her to confirm. Without meeting my eyes she nodded. More tears were spilling from her eyes.

"The next morning the one in charge…Aro," she choked out. "He started questioning me about myself and…about the p-p-pack and the Cullens. Jane was there to…I had to answer some of the questions. I felt like a t-t-traitor. Aro wanted me to let him read my mind, but I wouldn't let him. I don't know what would have happened it I d-d-did…"

Olivia collapsed into a fit of sobs, leaning on my shoulder for support. I tried to focus on comforting her, but I was starting to get angry with the Volturi. Luckily, I could momentarily keep it under control, but the thought of someone kidnapping Olivia for information she might not even have was difficult to swallow. Especially because it was the Volturi and we had been taught from a young age that they were beyond evil.

"I didn't know what he wanted from me," she whimpered into my shoulder. "Maybe it was because I was young and they thought that they could b-b-break me enough to say something." Well they definitely succeeded in breaking her judging by the weeks of depression Olivia had spiraled into.

"I was even more confused when they sent a letter to my parents, well to the Cullens. Nothing made any s-sense. I was stuck there for a week until my dad came but then they did something…" The frequency of her sobs increased, but what could have been worse than what had happened to her before that point? "One of…them…can dissolve relationships between people so when I ran toward my dad… I didn't recognize him for a minute. It was like I had never met him."

My jaw dropped. Of all the awful things to do to someone, that was rock bottom. Now I was being consumed by rage but she continued on, talking faster than before, having not noticed my sudden anger. "Some of the Cullens had come with my dad and Aro wanted them in exchange for my release, and they did it. They are stuck there in that infernal place because of me—Eli you're shaking," Olivia observed, obviously frightened.

I hadn't noticed because of how furious I was, but I was convulsing. Red was creeping into my field of vision and a growl erupted from my chest. My eyes widened when I realized what was happening, but I couldn't stop the shaking. Through clenched teeth I barked at Olivia, _barked_, for her to get away, and she obliged running to the part of the clearing that was farthest away from me; too frightened to stay, but oddly captivated by what was unfolding.

"Those _monsters_," I managed to snarl before I exploded.

In less than a second I was all dark grey fur. I towered over Olivia, panting at the sudden transformation. Bits a fabric floated to the ground like candy falling from a piñata. Both of us were too startled to react for a moment. We stared at eachother until Olivia regained her courage and took a few slow steps back before turning and darting through the trees, without a word of goodbye.

My thoughts were reeling, darting between pure anger and shock. In the chaos I hadn't noticed that I wasn't alone until a voice inside my head was practically screaming my name. And it wasn't my voice. It was Jared, urging me to calm down. Jared had full insight into all of my confusion, but luckily he still couldn't figure out why I had phased. If he found out what made me angry enough to phase so early, it would betray Olivia's trust, and that was the last thing I wanted to do right now. Of course, after this Olivia probably would be afraid of me for a while. Things would be really difficult from here on out.

_Eli, you need to run deeper into the forest so you won't be seen,_ Jared thought at me. My thoughts were still too frantic to respond coherently, but I obeyed, running for the first time in my new body. Everything about running as a wolf was different from anything I had ever experienced. The speed alone was almost frightening, but that wasn't the only thing to get used to. All of my senses were heightened so that even the slightest movements and sounds made me whip my head around to find the source.

And the crazy part was that whatever Jared saw, I saw, and his thoughts weaved through my mind as if they were my own. I almost ran into him because I was so distracted by everything around me. This part of being a wolf was way better than I had ever imagined. And now I wouldn't have to worry about being out of the loop all the time.

_What made you phase?_ Jared inquired with interest.

_I promised that I wouldn't say anything,_ I thought back, shoving the image of making the promise to Olivia out of my mind.

_It could be important, Eli, especially if it involves Olivia. _I was going to have to get used to controlling my thoughts because I was doing a pretty lousy job. The vague image that I had in my mind of the Volturi popped into my head and I began to growl involuntarily. But Jared already knew this so I wasn't breaking the promise.

_I can't. I'm sorry._

_You didn't imprint, did you?_ Jared asked suddenly. Come to think of it, my feelings hadn't changed when I looked her in the eyes after I phased. Jared saw this and let out a sigh of relief.

_That probably wouldn't go over so well with Sam. _Some images from Jared's mind showed how Sam felt when Olivia first went missing. It was painful to watch his anguished expression. Now I knew what Olivia meant when she said she couldn't hurt her parents anymore.

_This sharing thoughts thing is really intense,_ I thought, mostly to myself.

_Oh, you ain't seen nothing yet,_ Jared thought back. As if on cue, I felt two more wolves shimmer into being. The frantic thoughts of my dad and Sam played through my mind in stereo.

_Olivia told me that you phased in front of her. What happened?_ Sam demanded. The power exuding from him was overwhelming. I couldn't lie to the alpha.

_Olivia was telling me about what happened in Italy,_ there was a universal cringe, as if the place was a taboo. _And it made me angry and I phased._

So many thoughts came from Sam at once including, _You could have killed my daughter. _

_Take it easy, Sam. He couldn't control himself,_ Dad interjected. _Are you alright, Eli? _He added as a side thought.

_I'm fine, Dad_, I replied, my head spinning from all the voices inside it.

_What did she tell you, Eli? _Sam asked.

_Olivia made me promise that I wouldn't tell anyone. Not even you_, I thought timidly. Sam and I were usually on good terms, but I never had to look at him as my alpha before. He was beyond intimidating, and I was actually kind of scared of him.

_I guess I can respect that, if they were her wishes, _he responded after a minute, calming his thoughts instantly when he realized how frightened I was. I was impressed by how quickly he regained his cool. Maybe someday I would be able to control my emotions that well._ I'll talk to Olivia about it then. And there's something else that I would like to bring up…_

_What do you mean? _Dad, Jared, and I thought in unison.

_After tonight, I'm not going to phase again. _

All thoughts stopped.


End file.
